Commissioners discuss goals, strategies for county’s future

Whitman County commissioners Monday afternoon discussed the six goals and strategies they came up with at their Clarkston workshop in late July.

Commissioner Art Swannack is coordinating compiling all the information from the July workshop. Monday’s meeting was the first since the workshop.

Swannack reviewed the information he had compiled.

“This is just the beginning,” he said.

As he reviewed the goals, he said the elected officials have a big picture view of county government and work well together. The commissioners believe they know what to do and do their jobs well.

Swannack also said the board believes there is a “collaborative culture” between the elected officials and county department heads.

He also said the board works well together and has influence upon local and state issues and that the county, towns and university work together and cooperate with each other.

In a statement, Swannack said, “All elected officials of Whitman County have the skills and tools necessary to do their jobs in a highly effective manner and work collaboratively both within the county and between our county and other local and state jurisdictions.”

He said associated strategies within this particular goal are compassion between departments for each other’s goals and well-established policies of government.

The second goal outlined by Swannack is that Whitman County fosters a culture of innovation and change.

The goal of the county is to have processes that work smoothly and that are transparent, well-defined, integrated with each other and documented.

“We have established priorities of government which help make our services valuable and relevant to our citizens,” Swannack said in the statement.

“Whitman County must operate in a long-term fiscally sustainable manner which efficiently uses resources given to us by our citizens,” Swannack’s statement said.

This includes a multi-year budget so that the budget is not continued in crisis mode.

The fourth goal includes healthy employees with adequate health care and wages.

“Our employees are service-oriented, proud of their work, highly efficient and enjoy what they do. They have leaders who care about their well being, yet also hold them accountable for their performance.”

Goal five states no excess bureaucracy that includes laws and rules minimized to what is necessary and effective but no excessive checks and balances.

Goal six states abundant and sustainable resources to provide infrastructure and services to citizens without creating an entitlement culture.

The commissioners and a number of staff members attended the two-day workshop in Clarkston. Cost of the workshop was $1,000.

The commissioners will discuss the workshop again some time in September.