Commissioner meeting notes, Aug 4, 2023, 2 – 3:30.  A full agenda, productive meeting.  Let’s hope this trend continues.   20230804 Agenda Commissioner Meeting

Audio of the meeting and …. This post at Brown County Matters

Meeting Minutes. Sandy Cain, reinforced that minutes just need to cover the key points that include decisions that were made and the votes.  Note that commissioners have the responsibility to review and vote to approve.

On decisions requiring a vote, Ron Sanders is often the only dissenting vote.  Too often, commissioners are asked to vote on a decision with incomplete information and/or not provided with enough time to review.

For those considering running for commissioners in 2024, a review of the minutes is one of the ways of learning what the commissioner’s job entails. Attending meetings provides additional insights.

Overloook on 135, Re-building the Shelter. The Parks and Rec board agreed to take the lead in building a new Shelter at the site. It is hoped that grants, and donations, including material and time will help keep the cost low. The County will continue to mow grass and provide insurance. Transferring the property from the county to Park and Rec was not needed.

Bean Blossom Overlook and Shelter House

Indian Hill Railroad Crossing. The commissioners closed the crossing in May 2020 without a public hearing. Consequently, the impact and risks on residents and eliminating access to the Tecumseh Trail were not considered in the decision-making process. This led to an ongoing initiative – locally, regionally, statewide, to re-open the crossing. This year, commissioners petitioned INDOT to re-open the crossing. The Indiana Railroad Company (INRD) filed a rebuttal. The county and Knowbstone Hiking Trail Association (KHTA) provided a response to the INRDs rebuttal. INDOT to make a decision by Sep 23, 2023. Background on the issue and documentation available at the following: Part 4: Closure RR Xing, Indian Hill Rd – Petition to Re-Open

Capital Improvement Plan and Budget. Commissioner Sanders has taken the lead in developing a plan. The lack of a plan has been a repeat finding by the State Board of Accounts that has been ignored by the county.  A priority is the replacement of the air conditioning units at the jail at a cost likely to exceed 640K. Given the age of the systems, replacing one or more now instead of all at a later time, may pose incompatibility issues depending on the equipment/vendor selected.

 Other.  NEW Ordinance on position descriptions, a new service contract for Melissa Stinsor to provide assistance to the commissioners, the critical importance on the accuracy of position descriptions and classifications and the relationship to pay and benefits are provided in the notes on the Aug 3 Govt Meeting 3 at the following: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1749284288485538/posts/6541134535967132/

Updated  Nov 3, 2023

These government meetings include elected officials and county department heads/employees. The purpose is to discuss issues and concerns within the county government. The meetings, with the support of the commissioners, were initiated by Gary Huett, President of the County Council. The intent was to identify and address issues and concerns and start to build trust.  Building trust will require follow-through and changes that will improve results through more effective policies and practices.

Meetings are on the first Thursday of the month, 2:00 pm, Salmon Room, County Office Building

Nov 2, 2023. This was the 6th County Roundtable Meeting. Employees, Council (Huett, Swift-Powdrill, Kirby), Commissioner (Sanders).  See link for notes on the previous sessions.

… Unelected 4^th commissioner (s)?

• Job (Position) Descriptions (PDs)– HR Director and Commissioner Assistant. The PDs are being revised – this will be about the “3^rd time” for revisions to the “new” commissioner assistant position.
• A Little History on the Positions Drama.   Last fall, the commissioners and council determined that a commissioner assistant was not needed. They converted it to an HR Director Position and also funded a part-time receptionist/clerical position. The person that was in the assistant role (Melissa Stinson) left the county to accept a position in Monroe County. In the 2022 primary election, commissioner Biddle, who stated in her campaign that she was the first full-time commissioner in county history, lost in the primary to Ron Sanders. Sanders was elected in Nov. Sanders is not a favorite of the local GOP establishment and is often the lone decenting vote on policy issues being pushed by the local GOP.
• Local GOP. The local GOP leadership has the influence to support candidates for council and commissioner who may not have the desire, commitment, or time to devote to their positions. There is a steep learning curve that some may choose not to climb. Thus, having a “full-time” person in the commissioner’s office may be perceived by the local GOP leadership to offer more control over the direction of the county, including “influencing” staffing, personnel, and funding priorities.
• HR Director.  The HR Director position, it was structured under the theory that the council along with the commissioner’s office and auditor could provide policy and supervisory control over the individual in the position. It was later learned that only the commissioners have supervisory authority. This lack of control over an important position upset some of our elected officials.
• New Commissioner Assistant. When Commissioner Braden resigned due to job conflicts, the local GOP on a vote of 7 to 4, elected Blake Wolpert as the interim commissioner. Among his first acts was to take action to re-employ Melissa Stinson – initially as a contractor, while at the same time, creating a new full-time commissioner assistant position. This position was first approved in the absence of a formal commissioner meeting and then approved by the council. It was then learned that the commissioners have sole responsibility for position description and the council only over the pay grade. Despite the budget deficit, the revised PD and pay grade were then updated and approved by the Commissioners and council. The position vacancy was advertised, there were several applications, and Melissa Stinson was hired. Melissa is also the secretary of the local GOP.

The controversy over the assistant commissioner position including the need, roles, and responsibilities were discussed in the previous meetings (see below).

Transparency. I assume the new PDs for the HR Director and Commissioner Assistant will be discussed at the next commissioner meeting where they may take a vote to approve before the public has an opportunity to review the PDs. I suspect that the changes will reflect a shift of more power and control from the HR Director to the commissioner assistant thus allowing the local GOP to restore their influence and serve in the role of an unelected 4^th commissioner.

Initial discussions on the PD referenced an administrator role vice assessitant role.  An “administrator” would fall  with a “professional” category supporting a higher salary grade.

A few years ago, the county experimented with having a full-time “Executive Administator.” This turned out to be problematic and was eliminated.

• GOP Monopoly on Power. Note that a one-party monopoly on political power, can PREDICTABLY, lead to the centralization and abuse of power where the special interests can determine policy and funding priorities. The local GOP is led by realtors who understandably, advocate for development (which can pose a conflict of interest), as opposed to the quality of life and cost of living-related priorities.
• May 2024 Primary. All 11 Republican precinct chairs will be on the May primary ballot that offers a “referendum” on GOP leadership. Given the winners in the primary will very likely be elected in the Nov general election, cross-over votes by Democrats in the primary can help shape the direction of the county. There will also be two commissioners on the ballot and three council seats. At the county level, issues are not red or blue. Challenges are managing within a budget, roads, bridges, infrastructure, police and fire protection, and the other critical core government functions.

Other Topics

• Longevity/Seniority.  – Returning Employees. When an employee quits and then is re-hired, should their longevity (seniority) related benefits be restored? T-Be-Determined. .

Budget Questions.

• $150K was budgeted for “attrition recovery.” This was unique and explained generally as supporting turnover-related expenses. This would include the training-related cost of hiring a new sheriff deputy. It could also be used to immediately hire a new employee before the previous employee has left.
• $2,000K stipend. This was questioned – apprears that it can be used to pay for an employee to attend a government meeting after business hours, For example, the second commissioner meeting of the month is at 6:00 p.m. and council meetings at 6:30 pm.
• New Health Insurance Benefit?  A proposed new benefit was discussed. Should employees who opted out of the county health insurance plan be provided with a supplement to cover visits to the wellness clinic? It was estimated that this may cost an additional 16-18K a year for up to 20 employees. This could be less expensive to the county than if they opted for a health insurance plan

Oct 5, 2023.  This was the 5th meeting of elected officials and department heads/county employees.   There were 5 of the 7 councilmen present, no commissioners, and one county employee.

An interesting discussion on the budget. We have about $1.5. to 2 million dollars more in expenses than revenue.  About 20% of our budget (5 of 20 million) is spent on the Justice System – that includes the sheriff’s office,  Courts, Probation, Corrections et.al.  (In Nashville, (population 1,000), the cost of their police Department has been reported to be over over 50% of their budget.)

Of those on probation due to OWI, the majority are from out of the county.   This leads to the question as to what percent of the people running afoul of the justice system live in the county as opposed to outside the county?

In addition to justice system-related expenses, the county also finances police and emergency medical support for the State Park.  Historical efforts by the county to be reimbursed for this cost has fallen on very deaf ears at the statehouse.   Brown County State Park is a cash cow for the state and revenue is shared with the other state parks.

Sep 7, 2023. Meeting #4. County Operations – Continuation – Roundtable Discussion Sept 7, 2023 – 2-4 pm.

• • Next Steps – Get through this year’s budget submittal and start working on some improvements.  Given the budget challenges this year, the resolution of some issues has led to a little more in-depth understanding and knowledge of finance, accounting, and budgeting challenges.
  • Overall:  An assessment is that the county has about $1.5-2 million dollars of more government than we have the budget to support. This is a hard reality and requires leaders to be more deliberate in spending. Our accounting system can be a challenge in providing needed and timely information.
  • Salary Grade Structure – An Improvement. Councilman Redding briefed a concept of replacing the 30 pay grades with just a few “Tiers.”  It was well received – funding neutral at this point but a change would provide a better foundation for managing payroll, longevity pay, stipends, increases, et.al.
  • Salary – Market Rates and Turnover – Options?   The county is not competitive with pay – especially in the Sheriff’s Department which leads to turnover. An option is a “freeze” where the payroll accumulating as a result of vacant positions can be used to fund the higher pay of existing employees. This leads to the need to re-balance and reduce staffing.  Labor costs are always among the highest expense categories in organizations.
  • Grants. Contracting with grant writers (ARA in Columbus) was seen as an option for getting more money to fund operational costs.
  • Where does the money go? And how can other counties be paying at much higher levels than Brown County?    The common answer is that larger counties have a larger tax base with a more diverse commercial base.   Brown County is classified by economists as a Bedroom Community – people choose to live here and commute to jobs outside the county and many can now work from home. We are also a naturally occurring retirement community (NORC). Given this fact, the county opted for a tax policy of high income and low property tax. The low property tax contributed to the demand for land and homes that led to higher prices and homes considered unaffordable at the more modest income levels.
    • It would be interesting (and time-consuming) to do an analysis of the comparison between counties -ratios would be helpful. Would also need to identify outputs, volumes, etc.  Then you could compare things like cost per assessment, per record filed, permits granted, etc.
  • Some additional facts. On tourism, note this accounts for around 12 million in taxable wages. The total taxable wages for the county is over 425 million (in 2019). The land, terrain, country, and more rural lifestyle, are what has been attracting and retaining residents.  The age of poplulation is among the highest in the state and enrollment in schools has been consistently declining since 2009.
  • Vision? A little déjà vu – employees mentioned the need for a county vision, strategy, new comprehensive plan, and affordable housing. I started looking at these issues in 2016 and a few thousand hours later,  have a little understanding of the culture and economics … and a pretty good collection of documentation and research.   Up to now, there has not been a demand for any major changes – the status quo has been seen as good enough.
  • SWOT. In making the case for change/improvement, can start with a SWOT analysis – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats/Challenges. Opportunities point to solutions that then require the identification of the scope and extent of the problem.   Supporting information at https://browncountyleadernetwork.com/  

• • Inefficiencies 20-40% OF Budget?   In the quality profession, a general rule of thumb is that inefficient processes, procedures, internal controls, SOPs, etc.,(cost of poor quality – CoPQ) can range from 20-40% of the budget.

Aug 3, 2023 Govt Meeting #3 2-4 pm.   These meetings have been moved to one a month – the next one is Sept 7, 2023, 2-4 pm.   Some of the issues covered at this meeting were also addressed at the Aug 4 commissioners’ meeting.  This post at Brown County Matters.

Main agenda topic was on the compensation (salary) system and the need for a major improvement. Benefits are another important consideration regarding a total compensation system.

Budgets. The counterbalance to total compensation benefits and costs is revenue. When working to develop a new annual budget, the county starts off with a 1 to 1.5 million dollar deficit. This does not include unfunded costs associated with needed repairs and replacement of infrastructure.  For instance, there is a need to replace air condition units at the jail at a cost of 640K plus.  There is only 75K left in the 3 million capital improvement loan that will be paid off in 2024 at which time a new loan can be obtained. Given increasing interest rates, it is likely that property taxes will have to be increased unless less money is borrowed to keep the rate about the same.

• • Note that money from the loan was inappropriately applied to cover operating expenses (ambulance contract). The county has not been required to reimburse the fund.

Proposed New Position. A follow-up on the controversy regarding the proposed new commissioner’s assistant position and the job description was not on the agenda and appears to be on the back burner at this point. Two complaints were filed with the state’s public access counselor regarding the process for approving the proposed new position. Employees also raised issues with the need and quality of the job description at the approved pay grade.

New Service Contract. At today’s (Aug 4, 2023) commissioner meeting, a new service contract for Melissa Stinson (former admin assistant). She will be providing as-needed/requested assistance to the commissioners at a rate of $25.00 per hour.  She will be receiving a 1099 vs a W2. Commissioners Pittman and Wolpert voted to approve the contract; Sanders was the No vote.  The desire for a full-time assistant started with the appointment of Wolpert to the commissioner vacancy as a result of the resignation of Chuck Braden. No detailed explanation as to why a full-time assistant was needed – justification was anecdotal. The invoices should provide the detail as to what specific services are being provided.

2024 is an election year and two of the commissioner positions (Pittman, Wolpert) are on the ballot.  Good opportunity for voters to ask the prospective candidates about duties, roles, responsibilities and level of commitment.

Compensation (Salary) System.  The county system – well-intentioned, has evolved over time to include “35 grades” and is contributing to conflict and lower morale. The Council is looking to find a better system. Of the 92 counties in Indiana, I would suspect that there may be at least one system that would come close to meeting county requirements.   Federal and State governments have figured out the issues and challenges.  Appears counties are on their own. Is the State Personnel Department a resource that can be used to provide some advice and support?

Benefits.  Part of the compensation package are benefits.  The council identified that employer taxes such as  FICA and PERF (state retirement systems) add about 18% to salary costs.  Health Insurance is also an added cost – counties cost averages about 10K per employee (1.5 million/150 employees). The cost of the clinic and pharmacy can average about 2K per employee (300K/150).   Another intangible benefit is job security, holiday/paid leave, and working hours and conditions.

On Health Insurance, the county is self-insured.  The employer costs of defined plans available for State employees can be around 7K a year for a single person and 20K for a family. The self-insured option is less expensive but has higher risks if there are a number of serious health issues.  Consequently, building up a saving account is imperative – another potential unfunded liability.

Policy – Position Descriptions.  A first step in addressing fairness and compensation issues regards position descriptions. For 20+ years (?), the council has been assuming the responsibility to review and approve but it has recently been discovered that position descriptions are a commissioner’s responsibility. The council is responsible for ensuring the appropriate level of funding.  An interesting finding – both the commissioners and council pay for legal services and updates of position descriptions have been contracted out to a company that performs this task for other counties.  Indicates a weakness in internal controls at many levels.

Internal Controls.  Effective internal controls require a review of the statutes that govern an office. You then identify the stated, implied, and essential tasks. Essential tasks are those that if not performed, result in mission failure.  Internal control is the checks in place that prevent failure.  At the federal level, an annual review of internal controls is required of all agencies including their respective departments and branches.  The purpose is to ensure the effective and efficient use of taxpayer dollars.

• • Note also the process involved in managing internal controls also supports a review of position descriptions.  Identification of the tasks supports position classifications.

NEW Position Description Ordinance.  At the commissioner’s meeting Aug 4, 2023, a new position description ordinance was proposed.  The vote to approve was tabled until the next meeting to allow time for review,.

• • Note Indiana code “just” requires that citizens be informed of a new ordinance (via legal notices and two meetings) IF it involves a penalty or forfeiture.  The septic ordinance fell within this category. (IC Code 36-2-4-8).  A second reading can be waived IF there is unanimous consent of the voting members (IC 36-2-4-7).

Position Classification. My question on Job Descriptions regards the process for “classification.”  “A classification system groups similar jobs (with like duties, authority, responsibility, and qualifications) into the same position classification so that the same schedule of pay can be equitably applied.”  Example – State of IN https://www.in.gov/spd/compensation//

Link of occupational codes to a range of salaries. https://www.hoosierdata.in.gov/coder/

Citizens and employees should have confidence that a job is needed to perform the respective mission of the organization as required by statute, is “independently and objectively classified” and the salary is at the appropriate (and affordable) level.

July 21, 2023.  Meeting #2,. The second government meeting (departments, employees, elected officials). The first meeting was on July 7, 2023, from 2-4.  One of the strengths in the county is the longevity of many employees, which can bring some context to several issues to include those related to staffing issues.

Topics covered at the first meeting included: Pay, pay comparisons with other counties, county finances, personal administration and policies, health benefits and employee costs, position management, working conditions, culture, policies, procedures, budgets, communication, and county economics. This is expected to be the first of many future meetings.  The caution should be that identifying problems without following up with practical and successful solutions can do more harm than good.

I tried to capture as many of the points and issues as I could.  I’m sure I missed things or did not capture the sentiment of what was expressed. I did add some of my commentary and links to additional information on the topic.

One of my goals over the next 12-18 months is to develop a “Brown County Fact Book”  with sources to help support a fact-based perspective on the county, including economics, culture, jobs by type and industry,  employment, demographics, population, tax rates, plans, studies, local politics, et al. I’ve been collecting (and sharing) some of this information since 2016.

July 21, 2023 Meeting.

Council Members in attendance: Huett, Kemp, Kirby, Byrd, Swift-Powdrill (Rudd, Redding absent). Commissioners: Ron Sanders. (Pittman, Wolpert attended the first meeting).

The Hot Topic – in the Long-Run – Compensation – Pay and Benefits. Councilman Kemp identified his observation that pay was not adequate and needs to be increased.

This immediately creates the expectation that changes will be made to address the situation.  What was not discussed was how this would be funded. Commentary:

• • The county is funded primarily by income and property tax. We have to renew a loan (went from 2-3 million) to finance capital improvements (infrastructure). As reinforced at the meetings (and a repeat finding by the SBOA), we have no capital improvement plan and budget but we started working on one. No question that we have unknown and unfunded liabilities.  Commissioner Sanders started confirming an inventory of buildings and emerging maintenance issues – for instance, AC unit replacements at the Jail at around 600k.
  • I’ve been attending commissioners/council meetings since 2016. My take:
    • The council made a policy decision in the 90’s to keep property taxes low and rely on income taxes. The county income tax doubled in 10 years and maxed out. A couple of years ago, the county shifted from increasing income tax to property tax. BUT, given the constraints of state tax policy, we have been limited to only very minor increases in the property tax rate (determined by a growth quotient).    
    • Changes in property tax bills primarily reflect higher assessments due to market conditions – not as a result of the council increasing the tax rate.
    • My understanding. The state does not allow a county to max out the income tax rate and then shift and start trying to max out the property tax rate.  The county still has among the lowest property tax rates in the state.
    • In 2018, former Councilman Keith Baker facilitated a meeting by our financial consultant at the time (Umbaugh) to explain the tax policy. Umbaugh and Associates (Now BakerTilly) provided a presentation at the library that illustrated the complexity of our tax system – The Basics of Local Government Budgeting.   The information included  “scenarios” (pages 22-24) regarding transitioning from the high-income tax rate/low property tax rate option. Good luck trying to understand it but knowledge is needed to understand the options for raising more tax revenue and the respective constraints.
    • Due to constraints on revenue, former councilman Critser and Baker worked to balance revenue with pay and benefits. This included pay freezes (5 years at one time) and foregoing cost of living increases. Over the past few years, employees have been getting cost of living increases.
    • Baker led a Salary Study in 2018 that compared employee compensation with other counties of our size – the logic being that counties with a smaller population would have similar financial constraints.  In this comparison, Brown County’s compensation was among the best.
      • The exception in the study was truck drivers with CDLs that were paid more because of the turnover and competition.
    • This study was criticized by employees that believed their pay should be comparable with surrounding counties and near similar jobs. Higher populations result in higher revenue and bigger budgets. Higher salaries also can increase competition and expected levels of experience and education.  Turnover is an indication of non-competitive pay and benefits.
      • The sheriff’s office recently (2021) justified a pay increase. The cost associated with training deputies and turnover justified the higher salaries.  Ref: Deputies’ pay raise request approved by Suzannah Couch – August 11, 2021

Discretionary Offices/Department.  The two discretionary offices in the budget are the Veterans Office and Parks and Rec.  Other offices are required by statute.

2023 Indiana County Income Tax Rates – max is 2.5% that can be increased via a “Growth Quotient.”  Brown County’s income rate is frozen at  2.5234%.   The highest in the state is:. 2.9% (Wabash)

2023 Property tax Rates by County.  Property taxes are assessed by a taxing authority. Brown County shifted from increasing income taxes to property. Increases are limited to the “Growth Factor” determined by the State and given to all counties. The council can vote to accept (they usually do) or reject the increase.  Other taxes that be assessed on your property (wheel tax, school referendum other) are listed on your tax bill.

There are 2,080 taxing authorities in Indiana. In Brown County, these townships/conservancy, along with their tax rate and rank, include the following:

The Hot Topic —  New Commissioner Assistant Position.  The council approved the county commissioner assistant position grade 14 (42k), at their July 17 meeting with votes to approve by Huett, Kemp, Rudd, and Kirby. Darren Byrd, and Judy Swift-Powdrill voted no. Redding abstained (counted as a no vote).’

This topic also came up at the first meeting (July 7) with the expectation that action would be taken to validate the requirement, job description, and pay grade. Concerns were raised that their input was ignored, that the position was over-graded, pre-selected, full of redundancies and inaccuracies, and maybe not needed. Commissioner Sanders wisely declined to comment citing possible litigation. The decision for the new position was made by Commissioners Pittman and Wolpert in the absence of a public meeting.  

• • Note: I filed a complaint with the Public Access Counselor questioning if the decision by two commissioners to create a new position was in violation of open meetings laws.  I also filed a complaint questioning the validity of the vote by Councilman Rudd who voted via Zoom.

Pay Grades.  The county’s process for determining pay grades has been incremented over time and has resulted in  34-35 pay grades.  Information from other counties is being collected to help identify other options to include options for compensating experience. County offers $100.00 a year in longevity pay.  So, someone with 10 years of experience compared with a new hire in the same position, would only be making $1,000 more in salary.  Job positions also do not e include a range based on level of experience and education.  For example, an option could be that a position be advertised at a starting grade of 6 with automatic yearly promotions to a 9.

Job Descriptions and Classification. A surprise at the July 7 meeting was regarding position descriptions. The County contracted with a company to update all the job descriptions and the final versions did not include the input provided by the Departments.

The “So what? “ Job descriptions and classifications provide a baseline for pay and help with pay comparisons with other counties and the private sector. The inaccurate descriptions have led to requests for pay increases to compensate for the new/updated tasks. Once a position or pay is upgraded within one department, most everyone in the other departments may expect that they should also be receiving pay increases as well. An increase in one area starts a cascade which can contribute to lower morale and less trust and confidence in county officials.

• • Example: Compensation – State of Indiana – Job categories, classification, pay ranges.  

Management Culture – Top Down. Another insight was the perception that the overall management culture is dictatorial vs collaborative.  Commissioners and Council identify a policy and everyone is expected to fall in line without question. This was interesting and correlates to the perception that major decisions by the council and commissioners are rarely influenced by citizen input.

Pay Comparisons. Pay differences compared with what surrounding counties are paying can be significant. Comparisons require accurate position descriptions.

Health Benefit Costs, Changes in the health insurance benefits had to be made to slow the rising costs (about 2 – 2.5 million a year). This led to higher costs for employees. The clinic is seen as a good feature, but depending on plan options, out-of-pocket expenses can be significant. The county is “self-insured and a few catastrophic illnesses could have devastating financial consequences.  The council and commissioners accepted the Risk instead of paying the higher costs associated with defined benefit plans.   For instance, at the State, just the “county “cost per employee is around $7,000 for a single person and $20K for a family.

• • State – Health Insurance Plans and Costs (employees and government share)

Waste and Inefficiencies.  Areas identified as potential improvement were in using consultants as opposed to using/developing internal expertise for a variety of studies, plans, and project contracting practices.  It was also identified that new positions were created that included tasks that were previously routinely being done one or more by others.

Performance Reporting.  It was mentioned that one time, some departments would brief (or want to) their contributions at least once a year but the process was not encouraged or sustained.

• • Commentary. Each Department briefs its proposed annual budget. Adding in accomplishments from the previous year might be informative. Adding the review of performance and accomplishments as an agenda item at a commissioners/council meeting may also be helpful in building community trust and confidence in their local government.

New Source of Government Revenue? It was mentioned that the Music Center is having a good year. Any “excess profits” can be returned to the county as opposed to 75% (if legal) donated to the Brown County Community Foundation.  The Innkeepers tax is a county asset and managed by the county that was used as collateral for the loan to build the Music Center. It can be used for just about anything that supports tourism.

Cost of Living – Affordable Housing.  The county tax policy of low property tax has contributed to the high demand for land/housing, tourist-related businesses, and higher prices that have led to Brown County’s high median home values.

Bedroom Community. Ball State economists have identified Brown County as a bedroom community – people live here and earn their income outside the county. The majority of workers still commute to jobs outside the county (statsIndiana). We have also become a Natural Recurring Retirement Community (NORC).

• • The Brown County Community Readiness Initiative, a survey and economic assessment conducted by the Ball State Economic and Research Institute, concluded that Brown County’s greatest potential for economic growth is not tourism, but as a bedroom community. – BC Democrat – Sara Clifford

Population Projections 2020-2050. Brown County’s population is expected to decline and student enrollment has been declining since 2009.

Available Land. The fact that more than half our land mass is owned by the state and feds is seen as a detractor. However, it is also what attracts and retains new residents.

• • Brown County’s Economic Engine?   Tourism brings in 12 million in taxable wages. Total taxable income by everyone that filed a state tax return was over $524 million.

  • Part 1: Trails and Parks, Brown County IN

  • Part 2. Trails, Parks, Culture. The One Thing – Secret of Life

Expansion of Sewers and Economic Development?   Brown County has among the highest median home values in the State, supported by lower property taxes.  Consequently, homes are no longer affordable at modest to lower income levels.  Expanding sewers “may” lead to more housing but given market demand, prices may not be at the modest end of the affordability range.   The Brown County Comprehensive Plan (PDF) does not identify higher-density apartment options as a desired option.

Individual Performance Evaluation / Feedback.  This can be a debatable issue.  Individuals work within a system. The system determines the majority if not all of the result. Assessing the performance of the system is a good thing. Assessing individuals within the system can be problematic. Individuals and groups can choose to assess their strengths and weaknesses and improve goals that would contribute to improvements in the system.

• • For example, Grades in school can do more harm than good. Children control very little of the variable that affects performance. An article on the topics: —    Are-grades-effective-and-fair? 

Commentary — Some Ideas – Organizations – Groups

• • What is your purpose? Identify the Mission and Functions (tasks) for every organization.   Can post these on the website. Plenty of examples from other counties?
  • Why do you exist?  What is the link to governing statutes and regulations?
  • What are the mission-critical tasks – that if not done, result in mission failure?
  • What are the internal controls (checks) that you must have in place and follow to prevent mission failure?
  • What do you provide? Identify the services produced or provided, e.g., the outputs and the volume.
  • How well do you do perform your mission?  Assess organizational performance 
  • What’s changed?  Periodically review job descriptions, classifications, missions and functions, and performance.

The Brown County Leader Network offers a self-help guide for supporting continuous improvement.  Addressing issues included in the meetings can start with SWOT analysis.