The City Council has created 73 boards, commissions and committees, some of which are fraught with patronage and conflict of interest. Additionally, a number of non-Alexandria residents serve on some of these boards, and some of these people are actually chairpersons. It is time for a review of the structure and purpose of these appointed panels, to ensure that they are equitably staffed, and serve the needs of residents.
To “jump start” this renovation, the City Council should appoint a group to oversee this review. Perhaps it should be named the “Committee of Committees,” which is similar to a House of Representatives organization having this purpose. The chairperson should be a highly respected Alexandria resident who is familiar with the workings of the city government (e.g., former City Councilman and State Sen. Bob Calhoun would be an excellent choice). Additional committee members should be chosen by the Alexandria city manager; with a view towards staffing this oversight group with a representative selection of Alexandria residents.
The first task of this new “Committee of Committees” would be to assess the utility and value of all boards, commissions and committees in order to recommend which ones should be eliminated, retained, or combined with other committees. The respective membership rosters should likewise be scrutinized and recommendations be made to purge all non-residents and members having an excessive number of terms or multiple committee memberships from the rosters (these criteria to be determined).
The Alexandria Federation of Civic Associations should then participate in the nomination of new members for the remaining committees. The revised list of recommended committees and members should be submitted to the City Council for ratification. This process should be repeated every four years, unless no significant changes have taken place. This new process will hopefully insert the citizen into the critical decision-making process, and it should ensure a more equitable selection of committee members. This is a necessary step towards eliminating our current status of “taxation without representation.”
Townsend A. “Van” Van Fleet
Alexandria