(VIDEO: COMMISSIONERS BERNABEI & CREIGHTON) - STARK CO. DOG POUND ADVISORY BOARD "APPEARS" TO BE FINISHED. COMMISSIONERS FAIL TO RENEW EXPIRING TERMS. THE PRICE PAID FOR BEING TOO ZEALOUS IN ADVOCATING FOR THE WELFARE OF STARK'S DEPENDENT DOG POPULATION?

Based on the responses of Commissioners Janet Creighton and Thomas Bernabei at an impromtu press conference with them at the conclusion of Wednesday's regularly weekly meeting, the SCPR is prepared to conclude that the Stark County Dog Pound Advisory Board (SCDPAB) is clearly on its way to oblivion.

It appears that the commissioners are not of a mind to officially disband the advisory group (at least for now), but rather will have it be on a track to wither away through attrition.

As of the date of this blog only Carolyn Johnson, Sara Roushe and Judith King remain as members of the board.

If the commissioners relied on attrition alone, the technical existence of the SCDPAB could go on until Sarah Roushe's term expires on July 31, 2015.

But The Report does not expect that the commissioners will have the depleted board to waft in the wind that long.

Look for the commissioners to bide their time and when an opportunity presents itself to quietly put the SCDPAB into a permanent sleep.

As readers of the SCPR know, yours truly disagrees with the way this board of commissioners have handled their relationship with advisory board.  Yes, the board has been troublesome, probing and needling.  And, perhaps, as Commissioner Creighton likes to point out from time to time, overstep their boundaries.

But this is just the sort of thing in a democratic republic that public officials need to abide.  

In order to be credible to the overall Stark County community that it truly is different than prior boards of commissioners in terms of accessibility, accountability, transparency, openness and community engagement, the SCPR thinks Commissioners Bernabei, Creighton and Ferguson have taken a step backward on an otherwise impressive record of doing much better than prior boards on the foregoing criteria.

While the SCPR is convinced that this board of commissioners is an marked improvement over predecessor boards, incidents like the flap with the SCDPAB certainly highlight that these commissioners are not perfectly administrating the county and that citizens need to be inceasingly vigilant and persistent to ensure that the gains made do not evaporate over time.

If the commissioners were sensitive to the feelings of the remaining SCDPAB members (being put in the state of limbo), they would simply take the political hit for not having properly handled their relationship with the advisers and forthrightly pass a resolution officially dissolving it.

Just letting the SCDPAB exist but not really existing is like kicking a can down the road.  

The SCPR believes had it not been for the civic activism of the advisers, the plight of the animals at the Stark County Dog Pound (SCDP - Pound) would be far worse than they are now.  Stark Countians owe a debt of gratitude to Swank, Miller, Hayne and Pisanelli as well as others who have served in the past as advisers.

As can been seen below, Commissioner Creighton said on Wednesday that the commissioners consider all Stark Countians to be their advisers and that looking after county matters should not be relegated to a specific body of advisers.

That is all well and good, but as has been made plain by present and former SCDPAB members, they will continue to press the commissioners  (notwithstanding being stripped of their credentials) to make more sorely needed reforms in the way the Pound is operated and in its facilities.  

The folks who have staffed the SCDPAB are very well informed about conditions at the Pound inasmuch as many of them volunteer many hours on site tending to the needs of the dogs when inadequacies and inefficiencies crop up.

The SCPR would like see one or more of these folks periodically show up at commissioner meetings and at the Public Speaks portion of the meeting address and inform the commissioners and the public via the media of the status of conditions and operations at the Pound.

The commissioners did take a huge step yesterday in approving a resolution putting out bids for a complete rework of the ventilation system at the Pound, to wit:

Approve plans, specifications, cost estimate, and advertise for bids for the Stark County Dog Shelter HVAC System Upgrades Project. Construction cost estimate is $112,000.00 to be paid from the Permanent Improvement Fund.

Here is a video of Commissioners Bernabei and Creighton responding to the questions of Stark County media on Pound related matters.

(TWO VIDEOS) SHERIFF SWANSON SAYS HE AGREES WITH GOP COMMISSIONER CANDIDATE CRAIG CONLEY THAT SHERIFF DEPUTY BENEFITS NEED TO BE CUT!

The SCPR could not believe what Sheriff Tim Swanson was saying in an exclusive interview with yours truly on January 19th (this year) after he had just concluded his remarks to Stark County commissioners in his session with them on the question of general fund budget allocations for 2012.

Swanson says he agrees with Republican Stark County commissioner candidate Craig T. Conley that the deputies' benefit costs to the county general fund need to be reduced.

Why disbelief?

Because historically the two have been at great odds.  One wouldn't think Swanson would have the grace a political maturity to agree with Conley on anything.

Back in November, 2009 after the Conley-led "Vote No Increased Taxes Committee" had successfully - by a wide margin - repealed a commissioner (Bosley, Harmon and Vignos) imposed 0.5% sales tax (ardently supported by Sheriff Swanson), he - Conley - appeared before the next after the election result meeting of commissioners to lambaste them as well as Sheriff Swanson.

Here's the segment:  Conley on Swanson.



Currently, the deputies pay:

• 4% of health insurance costs as compared to 10% by the county's non-union workforce and about 30% (more or less) by private sector employees, and
• 10% (or 11.8% for some employees) of annual wages towards pension (that is, for new hire deputies, whereas other Stark County deputies employees pay only 5.5%) and the county pays 14% (plus 4.5% for a total of 18.5% for eligible employees' pick up or 18% [plus pick up] for a total of 22.5% for some employees) against the annual payroll.
• In the private sector, employers pay about 5% of the annual payroll for a defined "contribution" plan, if offered, and/or
• 6.2% of payroll for Social Security.
• Public pensions currently are defined "benefit" plan which guarantees a set monthly pension as determined by a combination of length of service and income in final three years of employment.
• Private pensions currently are defined "contribution" plans the payout on which is dependent on the loss/gain of the underlying investment (e.g. bonds, stocks et cetera) over the life of the plan as set at the time distribution begins and continues until depletion.

As readers can see/hear in the following video, it appears that Conley has had an impact on Sheriff Swanson.



Conley, a local attorney, has been probably the most effective citizen activist in Stark County.   As seen in the first video, he rode herd on the commissioners from December, 2008 through November, 2009 and was all over Swanson.

He has been a most vocal critic of Swanson's negotiation of contracts (he has been sheriff since 1999) with the union who represent the department deputies especially in terms of the contracts' generous provisions on the proportions paid by the employee versus the county general fund on health insurance and pension benefits.

In Swanson's defense, one needs to keep in mind that the mindset of some of the negotiations both pre-Swanson and during Swanson's term has been to step-up benefits for employees in lieu of wage increases.

You can bet that Conley as county commissioner, if elected county in November, will be putting pressure on Swanson's successor, either Democrat Mike McDonald, (who, by the way, tells the SCPR his health is dramatically improved and he is "full bore ahead" in running for office) or Larry Dordea (projected by the SCPR to win the Stark GOP March 6 primary contest) to negotiate reductions in the county share of deputy benefits.

The SCPR has heaped high praise on Conley for his work from April, 2009 through a good part of 2011 to force the hand of Stark County Prosecutor John Ferrero to obtain financial recovery for Stark County taxpayers on the loss of upwards of 3 million (in the opinion of many, $2.46 million admitted to) Stark County taxpayer dollars at the hand of former Stark County Deputy Treasurer Vince Frustaci.

However, his chances to become a Stark County commissioner is believed by The Report to be significantly less than 50/50.

Incumbent Democrat Commissioner Tom Bernabei did not come into office until the election of November, 2010 (to fill out the term of former Commissioner Steve Meeks) and therefore is not vulnerable to the criticisms that Republican Conley has made about Stark County's deficient county commissioner governance because the problems occurred during the time of former Commissioners Bosley, Harmon, Ferguson and Meeks (2006 - 2010).

Most observers credit Bernabei and fellow commissioner Janet Creighton with having turned around their part of Stark County government on the issues of openness, transparency, communicativeness, accountability and hence in an overall sense trust.

Conley opposed the recently (November 8, 2011) passed 0.5% sales tax largely on his belief (in the analysis of the SCPR) that Stark County was not yet in enough of a fiscal crisis and that major changes (such as dramatic reductions in sheriff deputy benefit reductions) would not occur until the county was completely down and out.

Nevertheless, because of Conley's "civic" hard work over most of the past four years, Stark County government is much more attentive to frugality and efficiency than in former days.