Commission chair asks manager for policy after "opinionated" advisory‑committee release

The board discussed concerns June 15 about an article attributed to the Environmental Issues Advisory Committee that several commissioners described as opinionated and published without consistent staff review. The chair said the committee represents the county and asked the county manager to work with staff to develop a policy requiring communications from advisory boards and committees to go through the staff liaison before publication.

Staff told the board the committee meets monthly, that subjects are approved by committee members, and that letters are sometimes written by the chair or members and then reviewed before submission to the Courier Times. The staff liaison said she does not always have time to review communications before publication and supported developing a clearer policy or process for such releases.

The county manager agreed to draft checks and balances to ensure communications from county advisory bodies are vetted through staff, and the board directed staff to return with a proposed policy at a future meeting.

What’s next: County manager and staff will draft a communications policy governing advisory‑board public statements and return to the board with recommendations within the coming month.