. I have noticed more and more items appearing on the Agenda/Setting Meeting agenda and later appearing as Consent Items at the regular meeting. The Agenda Setting Meeting agenda frequently appears to be about as long as the regular meeting agenda.

AVOC

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September 26, 2001

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Changes to Oconee Board of Commissioners Agenda

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By Wendell Dawson, Editor, AVOC, Inc.

I am on the mail list to receive the agenda of County Commission meetings. Most issues seem to be going pretty smoothly although there have not been too many really challenging issues this year-so far.

I have noted the addition of a Consent Item to the agenda for the regular Board meeting on First Tuesday of each month. The consent agenda never really had much appeal to me. I felt that if it needed to come up a second time, it would not take long to explain, discuss and vote.

For years, we used the last Tuesday night meeting to set the regular meeting agenda and to meet with people to talk about things like insurance proposals, equipment purchases and things requiring a great deal of discussion in an informal setting.

Sometimes time constraints required the Board to go ahead and act on some bids, hold first readings etc. The agenda setting meeting (last Tuesday of each month) was never intended to deal with formal business having a wide public interest unless it was specially advertised. There is not as much public notice of items appearing on that agenda.

I have noticed more and more items appearing on the Agenda/Setting Meeting agenda and later appearing as Consent Items at the regular meeting. The Agenda Setting Meeting agenda frequently appears to be about as long as the regular meeting agenda. The risk of this procedure is that the public will often not be aware of actions taken at the less formal and less attended meetings.