Newly Elected Quorum Court Begins Work
Tuesday night at 6 pm is the first Quorum Court meeting of the 2023-24 term, seating four new JPs and presided over by our new Republican County Judge Allen Dodson. A quick look at the agenda shows the JPs are being asked to immediately decide on three proposed Ordinances and a Resolution.
Typically when a new term begins, the County Judge (by law) first names working committees before beginning any work; committees select their own chairs. In the past, ordinances had to be discussed first in committee before coming before the entire Quorum Court — but no committees have been named yet.
Organizational Ordinance Not Published
To be fair, the first agenda Ordinance governs how the Court will conduct its operations for the next two years. Interestingly, this is the only Ordinance for January’s meeting that’s not available on the County website (at time of publication).
Watch for changes to the Court’s governing rules, as well as the timing/scheduling of the all-important Budget & Finance Committee. Will the Quorum Court follow Conway’s lead and decide to routinely abolish the three readings of new Ordinances? (Last term’s Quorum Court voted to always attach an emergency clause to most Ordinances, which allows immediate consideration/voting.)
Two appointments by Judge Dodson — County Coroner and a delegate to the state’s Quorum Court Association — round out Tuesday night’s agenda.
ARP Administrator, Again
The most important Ordinance is a carryover from December, 2022 of the failed Ordinance 22-59 to create a permanent ARP Administrator position in the County Judge’s office.
Where JP Jerry Boyer (R, Dist. 12) sponsored last December’s Ordinance 22-59, this new Ordinance 23-03 is sponsored by JP Tyler Lachowsky (R, Dist. 6). The language, while almost identical, adds dollar amounts to Section 2, the funding provisions — a change that was suggested last December.
But Section 5, which eliminates the position’s funding after December, 2026, may be the key to passage — plus the few weeks that have elapsed since the topic was first discussed publicly with all the JPs at December’s Quorum Court meeting.
Quorum Court members have also now had time to discuss the position and its implications with their constituents, so a new position in the Judge’s office to handle health insurance, ARP funds, and Roads contracting may become a reality. Because those duties have historically been part of the County Administrator’s position, watch for a change in duties for that position, as well.
Ordinance 23-02 is a routine, monthly Ordinance to “clean up” transfers and keep things straight in the County accounting system. It would be good to know what the County Judge’s office has in mind for the $6,500 in professional services.
Naming Committees
Resolution 23-01, sponsored by JP John Allison (R, Dist. 3) follows the filing of a bill (HB1048) by Rep. Stephen Meeks that says county Quorum Courts, rather than County Judges, will name their own working committees — a departure from 140+ years of straight-party control of the executive and legislative branches of County government in Arkansas. Which JPs will sign on to this Resolution?
December’s controversy over the ARP Administrator position made for an awkward, uncomfortable start for our newly elected Republican Judge who now presides over Faulkner County’s 11-2 Republican majority Quorum Court.
Watch how the votes unfold at January’s Quorum Court meeting, because Judge Dodson has yet to set up the 2023-24 Quorum Court committees — the selective naming of which, in the past, allowed the Democrat County Judge to reach a long arm through the Court’s committee to effectively shut out some JPs’ voices.
Tuesday night’s Faulkner County Quorum Court meeting begins at 6 pm at the Faulkner County Courthouse and is livestreamed on the County’s YouTube channel.
Photo by Jernej Furman on Flickr.
