The Richland County Board of Commissioners voted to adopt a resolution to reduce the size of the Richland County Mental Health and Recovery Services board.
Unidentified Speaker 3 summarized previous conversations with members of the mental health board and noted the board currently has 10 authorized seats but operates with nine members because one member has other obligations. Concern was raised that a smaller board could place additional committee work on remaining members. Unidentified Speaker 3 said he had asked a member whose term is expiring how many committees that member serves on and was told two committees that meet infrequently.
After weighing the concern about committee workloads against the difficulty of filling appointments and potential efficiency benefits, Unidentified Speaker 3 moved to reduce the board size as stated in the resolution. The motion was seconded and commissioners recorded affirmative votes.
The resolution reduces the board’s authorized membership; staff and the mental health board were consulted in advance, according to the record. The board’s offices will follow up on any adjustments to committee assignments and appointment processes necessitated by the change.