It’s time for a change of leadership at the county level. The current Benzie County Board of Commissioners (Boc) is out of touch with the majority of its constituents.
There are many examples of the ways in which the BoC has disregarded, ignored, or circumvented the will and priorities of Benzie County Voters:
LOCAL ELECTIONS
- In 2019, when an elected Democratic Benzonia County Commissioner stepped down for personal reasons, rather than respecting the will of the voters and replacing this seat with another Democrat, the Republican Board of County Commissioners appointed a Republican to the seat.
- This exact same thing happened again in 2021, when the elected Democrat Commissioner representing Crystal Lake Township and the City of Frankfort needed to step down. The all- Republican Board of Commissioners again ignored the will of the voters and appointed a Republican to a commission seat won by a Democrat. That is not fair representation. How many voters even know this happened? The Commissioners, operating under the radar once again.
NATIONAL ELECTIONS
- In 2021, the all-Republican Board of County Commissioners refused to comment when a group of concerned Benzie citizens presented an agenda item regarding a resolution to acknowledge that 2020 was a free and fair election, that our Benzie clerks and poll workers did their jobs with integrity, and that January 6 was an unprecedented domestic terrorist attack on our democracy. Not only did the all-Republican Board of Commissioners NOT hold a vote on this resolution, they said absolutely nothing in response. The BoC again went against the will of the voters.
ANIMAL WELFARE
- In 2021, Benzie’s all-Republican Board of Commissioners “forgot” to put the animal control millage renewal on the ballot. They publicly recognized the millage lapse and then voted unanimously to use CARES Act funding to make up the loss if necessary.
- Voters again overwhelmingly approved the animal control millage when it was finally on the ballot in August 2022. Clearly, the BoC ignored the priorities of the community.
THE MAPLES
- Benzie’s all-Republican Board of Commissioners listed ‘Prospect of Privatizing the Maples’ on the county commission strategic planning agenda.
- It was listed again on their March 1, 2021 agenda.
- They then claimed that they had no intentions to Privatize the Maples, while continuing to advocate for privatization. The voters again overwhelmingly approved the Maples millage when it was on the ballot in August 2022. Clearly, the BoC again went against the will of the voters. Of all proposals passed in August 2022, the Maples millage proposal had the most votes.
- In 2021, the all Republican Board of Commissioners voted to decrease the 20-year Maples millage passed by the public in 2010 without taking into consideration the pandemic or circumstances caused by it. They claimed that they were returning money to the county voters but the project was not yet complete. As a result, The Maples is facing budgeting problems as they work to provide capital items for the old building etc.
- 2022 – Re: funding to Maples over the next few years; the Board of Commissioners has to release funding to the Maples regarding capital items for the old building. Commissioner Art Jeannot asked if they were staying within the budgeted amounts. Answer: No, due to all the increases. Art Jeannot replied, we can’t spend more than we have. (NOTE: please remember that last year (September 28, 2021) the BOC voted to decrease the 20-year millage rate that was passed in 2010; they wanted to give the “surplus” back to the people of Benzie County).
PUBLIC HEALTH
- During the height of the Covid pandemic the all-Republican BoC questioned mask effectiveness, suggested “defunding the health dept.” as well as taking legal action against the mask mandate, and asked our Health Director if she was using a “fear factor.” Then on Sept. 28, 2021, the all- Republican BoC voted to hold the Health Dept. ransom in the middle of a global pandemic, and voted to hold back half of the Health Department budget until “we get answers.”
- After much public input against this action, on Oct. 26, 2021, Commissioner Roelofs stated that “information is out there that we cut half of the health dept. budget – we did not; we provided half in the budget and the other half is placed in contingency pending the information requested.”
- Some of the Benzie Commissioners sit on the Board of Health. If they don’t know how the funds of a huge budget they are overseeing are being spent, that is a result of their negligence. Cutting Health Dept. funding would also impact the maternal and infant health program, women’s health care, hearing and vision screenings for young children, access to nutritious food for women and young children, children’s access to immunizations, family support, protecting our food and water from disease, and much more. Cutting funds for programs that help the entire community and mainly young children and their families is a clear violation of the trust and will of the community.
- “We’re currently in the process of finalizing the budget for the upcoming year, and I’m not opposed to looking at it again to see what we actually do send the Health Department. I’d certainly be willing to defund them completely for any upcoming years if they go through with any punitive actions toward our local schools or school board members.” Evan Warsecke, Commissioner.
- The all-Republican BoC remained silent while hospital personnel and our Public Health Director were threatened with violence, bullied, and treated with contempt at the height of the pandemic just for doing their jobs.
- Benzie’s all Republican Board of Commissioners attempted to replace the local and experienced physician on the Benzie / Leelanau Health Department Board. After much public outcry, they relented.
PUBLIC ACCESS AND PARTICIPATION
The all-Republican BoC continues to hold meetings only at 9am, when many folks are working, in spite of repeated requests by the public to have at least some evening sessions.
- The all-Republican BoC prohibited public input via zoom during county commission meetings during a novel global pandemic thus preventing people at high risk for Covid complications from participating in the moment.
- Motion by Sauer, seconded by Markey, to amend the Public Input Policy by adding the sentence: The Board will not be accepting public comment via zoom / online.’ And as far as I know, they do not stream meetings onto YouTube as other counties do even though they are able to do so
PUBLIC SCHOOL SAFETY
- Most recently the all-Republican BoC failed to write a millage proposal that reflected their true intentions regarding the School Resource Officer, excluding both the Commissioner and the Mayor of Frankfort from these discussions even though they had been meeting together on this topic for months. The revision involved the county using public money for private, religious schools.
CONCLUSION
All of these actions (and inactions) by the Benzie Board of Commissioners show a continuing effort to second guess the voters and to operate in a way that keeps resident knowledge and participation to a minimum.
It also shows that, too often, the commissioner liaisons remain uninformed about the legitimate functions and needs of the agencies they are supposed to represent and which the voters overwhelmingly say they want. We need to elect Commissioners who value transparency, fairness, and community involvement in local government.
Just under 50% of Benzie constituents vote Democrat yet they have zero representation at the county level. Thank goodness voters have an opportunity to right these wrongs this November by electing Democrats to the Commission.