Published September 29, 2014 | By admin ARC Public Comment Policy Falls Short By Field
Searcy September 28, 2014
Last Wednesday, twelve private
citizens addressed the Atlanta Regional Commission about the adoption of a more
friendly public comment policy at the monthly board meetings. For some on
the board, the comments were not welcomed. Maybe they were offended by
the tone or the political correctness. Maybe the words cut too close to
home. Or, maybe they’ve forgotten the price that was paid to secure the
right.
The very foundation of the First
Amendment was the right of political speech of the people to petition their
government or challenge its authority. The ARC receives federal, state
and local money. Its existence is the creature of government legislation
at the state and federal level even its structure violates the republican form of government. In every way, it is bound by the Constitution
for the United States and the Georgia Constitution. In fact, the board
members all swear an oath of allegiance to the same.
While all the ARC board members have
busy lives and political careers, they should never be too busy to hear from
the people that have delegated representative authority to them.
Indeed, the policy adopted is more
liberal than the previous policy which required a 10 day notice, a motion by a
board member, a second and a 2/3rd’s vote. The new policy on public
comment remains inadequate for the following reasons.
- For a regional commission for 10 counties and a metropolitan planning organization (MPO) of 20 counties representing more than 5 million people, allowing a total of only 10 minutes with up to 2 minutes per person is not sufficient. Even Cobb County, which has recently been under fire for limiting public comment, has a more liberal policy.
- Given the limited amount of time allotted for public comment, safeguards should have been included to allow time for all points of view to be heard. Witness the backlash that was caused in Cobb by stacking of the deck with supporting voices against the citizens with opposing views. A true consultative approach of allowing differing opinions should be protected. A wise person once said “The shining spark of truth, cometh forth only after the clash of differing opinions.”
- Public comment should be guaranteed directly in the ARC governing bylaws rather than a policy that can be changed “from time to time.”
The ARC Board passed the new policy
with a vote of 19-7. We don’t believe the 7 that voted “no” are against
free speech. Quite the contrary, we believe they wanted the sounding
committee to rework the policy with some of the reasons cited above in mind. We
salute them for their courage to not vote in lockstep with the rest. This was
really the significant event since rarely is there ever a dissenting vote on
any ARC Board decisions.
For too long, the people have been
asleep and silent; not paying attention to what our elected
representatives have been doing. We were too busy or too trusting to
notice that authority was being subverted to unelected persons that cannot be
held accountable to the people.
That is no longer the case.
All across the spectrum, a political awakening is taking shape. The
citizens are coming together, rediscovering that “We the People” are the sovereigns’ of the government and are reclaiming our rightful place to keep the
government accountable and safeguard our liberties.
Field Searcy, a Cobb citizen,
represents RepealRegionalism.com
an education campaign by the
Transportation Leadership Coalition, LLC which led the grassroots effort
against the Regional Transportation Tax (TSPLOST) in 2012.
Permission to reprint is granted
with full attribution.
Comments
As one of the 12 speakers who addressed the
ARC Board, I agreed with the reforms presented by ARC Board Member and Fayette
County Commission Chairman Steve Brown. And then I said: ‘Going forward, be
mindful that the tax dollars you allocate to these projects are printed out of
thin air and turn into inflation the moment these dollars are spent.’ I further added: ‘The Federal Reserve has increased the money
supply by 450% over the past few years.
We can pay that off with 10% inflation for the next 45 years.’
Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader
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