The elementary hypothesis of the “way it’s always been” is doing the same things over and over and assuming that is the only way of doing them. What is the hypothesis of a better way to manage county road systems other than “the way it’s always been.”
Taking politics out of this equation, the adoption of a County Wide Road Department as opposed to a Precinct Road System is accomplished by comparing cost efficiency between the two systems. Should a County Road System prove to be more cost efficient the yoke of responsibility is upon the taxpayers to vote on adopting a new system, not County Commissioners.
When was the last time a comprehensive study was performed by an independent source to determine if the Precinct Road System is the most cost effective system compared to other available systems of road management?
Several years ago, The TEXAS COUNTY PROGRESS (The Official Publication of the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas); the County Progress asked a road expert to explain the benefits of the Unit Road System (County Road System).
The following is an excerpt from that article: Quote; “In visiting with other counties having approximately the same miles of roads to maintain, I found it interesting to compare the efficiency of the Unit Road System versus the Precinct System both in cost per mile to maintain and the number of employees to do so; the Unit System was substantially lower”; end quote. The Texas Transportation Code 252 offer several different methods of county road management systems. These systems have been available for years for Texas counties to adopt; it’s simply a matter of understanding the advantages and disadvantages.
PRECINCT ROAD SYSTEM: A County Commissioner (an elected political position) represents one of four precincts within a county. The commissioner is typically responsible for the building and maintaining county roads and bridges. Commissioners are responsible for prioritizing road work, ordering material, personnel matters, purchase of equipment and preparing a yearly budget. Each precinct has an independent workforce, a county barn and equipment. The majority of time County Commissioner is managing the maintenance county roads, whereas the lowest percentage time is managing county business.
COUNTY ROAD SYSTEM: As opposed to independent precincts all four precincts are consolidated under centralized single source management of a Professional County Road Engineer. A County Road Engineer is not an elected political position; the engineer is appointed by the Commissioners Court. Advantages of single source management are prioritization of county roads needs county-wide as opposed to the needs of individual precincts. This allows the County Road Department to develop short and long range road improvement plans county-wide. To focus tax dollars for permanent solutions as opposed to spending dollars on temporary solutions. Single source management stops duplication of road and machine equipment, eliminates equipment sitting idle and a divided workforce. Schedules can be completed in a timely manner simply because a consolidated workforce is far more efficient than a divided workforce. A consolidated workforce under single source management provides greater control over response to county-wide emergencies and catastrophic disasters. Other benefits are county-wide consistencies in personnel management, evaluations, training, operations and practices and a fair and balanced representation county wide absent political equations.
It is difficult for County Commissioners to play a pro-active role in promoting change because it means the responsibility of road management would be transferred over to a Professional County Road Engineer. The duties of a County Commissioner may no longer warrant full-time responsibilities. Therefore, the county would elect NON-PAID (except for expenses) COUNTY COMMISSIONERS from each precinct to represent citizens and manage the business of the county until the time when full time Commissioner was needed. These Commissioners along with the County Judge make up the Commissioners Court.
The responsibility of every elected official is to seek out cost containment opportunities to help make county government more cost efficient and help relieve tax burdens. When states are engaging in cost containment and budget cuts usually means that state cuts filter-down and affect county budgets. Cost of services that were once provided by the state is absorbed by counties. County services are either cut or budgets increased which equates to tax increases. Is it not imperative that elected officials and taxpayers do their due diligence in searching out cost efficient ways of doing county business? Is it not imperative to search out revenue generating opportunities to help relieve tax burdens from citizens?
So, how much longer should a county hold on to illogical, anachronistic system of road and bridge work. At best, change in traditional mind-set is difficult to overcome, opposition is strong political agendas at large undocumented and unqualified opinions but progress is inevitable.
Before a boat can cross a lake it has to make waves or it will never get there. The burden of responsibility is upon the shoulders of the taxpayers.
(Originally published in The Fannin County Leader, Feb. 3, 2016)
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