A curious thing happened at the end Thursday\u2019s hour-long joint appearance at Eckstein Hall of State Rep. Joe Sanfelippo, who wants to reduce the role of the Milwaukee County Board, and County Board Chairwoman Marina Dimitrijevic, who is fighting Sanfelippo\u2019s proposals:<\/p>\n
A lot of people stayed on to talk. Dimitrijevic talked with whoever came up to her. Sanfelippo did the same. County Executive Chris Abele, who was in the audience, had almost a dozen people gathered around him at some points. Other people lingered and mingled through much of the Appellate Courtroom.<\/p>\n
Usually, the room clears pretty quickly at the end of events of this kind. But for some reason \u2013 an interest in talking about the issue? the availability of the main figures? the chance to catch up with people? \u2013 this was a group that didn’t seem to want to\u00a0leave. There were probably almost 50 people, out of an audience of more than 200,\u00a0still in the room 15 minutes after the session ended.<\/p>\n
Maybe this was a little bit different way of demonstrating how the public policy programs that Marquette University Law School has been hosting for the last half dozen years are meeting their goals of furthering serious, informed conversation on major issues. The notion of being a crossroads for such a discussion starts with the presenters at these sessions, but it often extends to the informal conversations before a program, during breaks, or afterwards.\u00a0The main business was the hour-long session, focused on the controversial proposal to re-shape how the top levels of Milwaukee County government operate. The program was part of the \u201cOn the Issues with Mike Gousha\u201d series at the Law School, but the format was different. In what was basically a debate, Dimitrijevic and Sanfelippo stood at lecterns, with three journalists, including Gousha, the Law School\u2019s distinguished fellow in law and public policy, facing them and posing questions. The program was co-sponsored by the Law School and the Milwaukee Press Club.<\/p>\n
The state legislation proposed by Sanfelippo, a former member of the County Board, would transfer considerable power from the board to the county executive. The goal would be to have County Board members set policy, set the budget, and oversee county operations on a general level, leaving the operation of county government mostly to the executive, Sanfelippo said. He said that was the intent when the Legislature in 1960 created the position of Milwaukee County executive, and he said that is the way things operated for the next 15 or 20 years, before supervisors began taking more power on themselves. That led to the County Board positions becoming full time and to staff of the board growing from just a handful to the current 38, he said. His proposal calls for a countywide referendum on whether the salaries of supervisors should be pegged to an index that would reduce them to about half their current level.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn no way, shape, or form is that a full time job,\u201d Sanfelippo said of being a County Board supervisor. The services of county government have been reduced since the structure now in place was created.<\/p>\n
Dimitrijevic said the job is \u201cfull time, around the clock,\u201d with supervisors expected to be readily available to help constituents. The functions that remain with county government require extensive attention, she said.<\/p>\n
Dimitrijevic especially disagreed that the decision on how to structure the board should be made by the Legislature. The decision on how county government should be led and what the role of the board is should be made in Milwaukee, either by the supervisors themselves or by voters who pick the board members every four years. She said that while Sanfelippo wants to go back to 1959, she wants to move county government into the future. She said public sentiment expressed at recent hearings around the county was strongly against Sanfelippo\u2019s proposal. She said, \u201cWho\u2019s asking\u201d for change?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t need a bill in Madison to tell us what our local government should be like,\u201d she said. \u201cI think this is something that can be handled locally.\u201d She also objected to the decision, at least to this point, by legislative leaders not to have a public hearing on the issue in Milwaukee County.<\/p>\n
Sanfelippo said the board had had many chances to change the way it and the county as a whole are run and had not made meaningful steps. He pointed to the long-vacant former freeway land that passes near the Bradley Center downtown as an example of how ineffective and cumbersome county operations are. He said board members were telling the public, \u201cwink, wink, nudge, nudge, trust us this time,\u201d when they weren\u2019t intending to make serious change.<\/p>\n
Dimitrijevic said, \u201cThis is a new day for the county board,\u201d with many newer, younger members, and changes will be made. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to get on the right track,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n