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Chairman Says Board Reduction Could Hurt Rural Residents

Hancock County Board Chairman David Walker has ”mixed feelings” about a proposal to reduce the size of the board.

District Two Republican Delbert Kreps has suggested reducing the size of the board from 15 to nine members. He said the change would save the district money. He also said the change would reduce the power of the board chairman since the whole board would take the place of the individual committees that conduct county business. Kreps believes the chairman doesn't keep the board informed on financial matters.

Chairman David Walker, also a Republican, said the reduction would save the county money.  

He also said, ”The current configuration seems to work fairly well. I know there's some people that have concerns that areas of the county would be under-represented. It'll be dominated by the larger communities if we go down to nine board members. That's a concern.”

Walker disagrees with board members who feel he wields too much power. He said board members need to be more active and ask questions of him.
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The board is studying the proposal. The board could put the issue before voters in November's election. If approved, the reduction would take place two years later.