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State group pushing to revamp top county jobs

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By Laura Bischoff and Lauren Pack, Staff Writers 10:41 PM Friday, February 3, 2012

Plans to revamp county governments in Ohio to save public funds could pit auditors, treasurers and other officeholders against one another and against county commissioners if approved by lawmakers.

The County Commissioners Association of Ohio is advocating for legislation that would allow county commissioners to contract for coroner services, which would eliminate the need for an elected county coroner. And the association is pitching a bill that would allow combining county-wide offices or outright eliminate the elected post and replacing it with an appointed professional.

The coroner bill would allow county boards of commissioners of one or more counties to contract with another elected county coroner’s office for services. The contracts would run for four years and if a contract is executed the county board of elections would not accept petitions for the office of county coroner and voters would not have a say.

“If they can show us true cost savings and better service, please, we’re open to that,” said David P. Corey, executive director of the Ohio State Coroners Association. But Ohio law requires elected county coroners to be physicians and the pay varies between $22,090 to $121,323, depending on population.

“You can’t get a better price than what you have now,” Corey said. He also noted that coroners use a regional system for autopsies, which are the most expensive part of a death investigation.

Dr. Richard Burkhardt, the Butler County coroner who is not seeking re-election this year after serving in the post since 1980, said consolidation may work in some counties where a full-time coroner is not needed. Butler County, which is growing, is not one of those counties, he said.

The new alternative form of county government is more complex. The county commissioners could adopt a resolution calling for a new structure and put the question to the voters. The structure could call for an elected or appointing a county executive and electing a board of commissioners of up to nine people selected by district and/or at large.

“There will be a lively debate around these bills,” said Larry Long, executive director of the County Commissioners Association of Ohio. He said his briefing to representatives from the county officeholder groups got a frosty reception. “They are not happy about it.”

The structure could also call for eliminating an elected office and shifting the responsibilities to an appointed department head hired by the county executive or combining existing elected offices into a single elected office. For example, the clerk of courts and recorders offices could be merged or a county fiscal officer could replace the treasurer and auditor.

“We think there are some cost savings,” Long said. Duplicative administrative jobs such as human resources, information technology, public information officers could be eliminated if offices were consolidated, he said.

But he quickly added that each county and region would have to run the numbers and decide what makes the best sense.

“Bigger is not always better. This is an empowerment tool for local government to see if there are cost savings,” he said.

Butler County Auditor Roger Reynolds said the structure of government is not the problem.

“The problem is the people elected do not have the background to do the job,” Reynolds said. “There are too many political hacks.”

Reynolds pointed to Cuyahoga County were restructuring does not save money.

“At the end of the day, the office holder is responsible for managing taxpayer dollars. Elected officials should have a sound business background, no matter what the office,” Reynolds said. He added there is a need for a balanced government and separation of power that is gained through electing office holders who are responsible to those who elected them, not an employer.

Butler County Treasurer Nancy Nix said the restructuring proposal resurfaces every few years and is a topic of discussion at treasurers’ association meetings.

“It’s really not saving money. If someone could prove there is a saving, I think people would be more on board,” Nix said.

She added if voters look at the qualifications of candidates and elect profession people to office, government will be fiscally responsible.

“There is a need for qualified people in office no matter what the form of government,” Nix said.

Contact this reporter at (513) XXX-XXXX or XXXX@coxohio.com.

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