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3g <br />1 <br />MINUTES <br />TASK FORCE ON THE PROCESS FOR ELECTING COUNTY COMMISSIONERS <br />JUNE 16, 1993 <br />The Public Hearing to solicit citizen comment on this issue <br />was held on June 16, 1993 at 7:00 p.m. in the Auditorium of the Guy <br />B. Phillips Jr. High School, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. <br />MEMBERS PRESENT: Chair Keith Cook, and members Sharon Worthington, <br />Patrick Mulkey, Robert Ferguson, Richard Hammer, Gloria Williams, <br />Rachel Lynch - Gaya, and Linda Carver. <br />STAFF PRESENT: Kathleen Baker, Deputy Clerk to the Board. <br />The meeting was called to order by Chair Cook. He welcomed the <br />citizens in the audience and articulated the Charge given to this <br />Task Force by the Board of County Commissioners. They are charged <br />with determining if the current process is fair or unfair, and if <br />it is unfair, to whom is it unfair. Each member of the Task Force <br />introduced themselves and indicated which organizations they were <br />representing on the Task Force. <br />THE PUBLIC HEARING WAS OPENED FOR CITIZEN COMMENT <br />Steve Levine, of 5001 White Horse Road, Chapel Hill Township, <br />indicated that this is a critical issue in the democratic process. <br />Task Force members have a very responsible position. He felt that <br />it was irresponsible to force the Task Force to resolve this issue <br />by the end of the month. He asked that they request more time to <br />complete their Charge. He believes that the figures show that the <br />current system does not fairly represent rural citizens, females or <br />African - Americans. He mentioned that although he is a liberal <br />Democratic, this issue is broader than Democrat /Republican or <br />rural /urban. The current system has been in place for 40 years <br />and does not adequately represent everyone in the county. He <br />strongly supports expanding the Board and changing the system to <br />ensure that all minorities be represented. <br />Keith Cook pointed out that the Task Force is charged with <br />determining whether or not the system is fair and equitable. If it <br />is not, the next task is to determine to whom is it unfair. If a <br />large number of people say that they do not feel represented under <br />the current process, the next step will be to determine what kind <br />of a system would guarantee that representation. <br />Lightning Brown, of Chapel Hill Township, submitted remarks given <br />to the County Commissioners last September. He stated that he <br />believes there is a problem and that the proposed districting <br />system would not serve the county in terms of giving the best <br />representation. He distributed a handout. He mentioned that the <br />