• County manager could benefit many • Humane solution Editor’s note: The author served on the Cost Control Commission and as chairman of the Solid Waste Task force during the Kusaka administration. County manager could benefit many Like many of
• County manager could benefit many • Humane solution
Editor’s note: The author served on the Cost Control Commission and as chairman of the Solid Waste Task force during the Kusaka administration.
County manager could benefit many
Like many of us, proponents of the county-manager form of government believe it could be more efficient than the current system, but specifics are lacking. The Ka Loko dam tragedy has recently been mentioned in TGI as something that a more-effective government should have prevented. I remember a few more specific examples.
You may recall that the Kusaka administration requested proposals for a new solid-waste-processing system. The goal was to reduce or perhaps eliminate the need for a landfill. The capital investment and operating costs were to be paid primarily from tipping fees. Bidders submitted proposals based on a variety of technical approaches, ranging from waste-to-energy incinerators to small-scale, waste-processing plants using biological processes to yield useful byproducts to the promising-but-unproven plasma arc process.
During the proposal-evaluation process, it became clear that the county’s request for proposals (RFP) had serious deficiencies in the evaluation criteria, contract terms and conditions, and business plan. When one of the least-qualified bidders protested, the procurement was canceled by the county to avoid a threatened lawsuit. We are still without a much-needed, solid-waste-treatment system.
During the same era some much smaller procurements were made with RFP requirements which did not clearly benefit the county. In one, for example, the winning bidder had to have certain equipment on hand on the day the contract was awarded. This all but locked out any competition for the incumbent, which had all the requisite equipment.
A qualified county manager would have avoided these procurement problems by ordering a thorough review of each RFP before its release. The level of review would depend on the size and complexity of the procurement. In the case of the solid-waste-processing system, the county did have a number of very-capable employees and could have supplemented them with consultants to form an expert panel.
I say “qualified” because, while book-learning helps, it takes time and experience to develop management skills. I would be leery of a county manager with a degree and only a couple of years experience. Management skills do make a difference. We have seen that with the Ford Motor Company, which began management initiatives several years ago to improve its competitive position. GM and Chrysler did not and ended up needing bailouts.
An obvious sticking point for the county-manager concept is that the mayor and council members would have to delegate operational control and power to the county manager. They would still set policy and enact requisite legislation but the county manager would have to make daily management decisions, submit operating budgets, and manage to those budgets.
Our political leaders, county employees and taxpayers can all benefit from a county-manager system. The county manager should establish good management practices which result in better county-employee satisfaction and productivity, which provide better results for the taxpayers, and which free political leadership to focus on big-picture issues. Our political leaders who aspire to higher office could learn good management techniques from an expert.
If all that is accomplished, it is worth a big paycheck. If not, the county manager should be fired.
John Love, Kapa‘a
Humane solution
In response to Donna Alalem’s letter “How would dog-barking law be measured?” …
I agree with her and recently adopted an adorable little 5-year-old Maltese named “Joy” at the Kaua‘i Humane Society. But Joy is a yappy little barker and it drives me crazy. I love her too much to ever consider giving her back. So the problem was mine to solve.
Someone offered me their shock collar which they used to curb their own small dog’s barking. I wondered if they had tried it on their own neck first to see how it felt.
The Kaua‘i Humane Society sells a “Spray Sense Anti Bark Collar” that releases a small whiff of citronella spray every time the dog barks. It is a very effective means of solving the barking problem and is harmless to the dog. Cornell University research found that 88.9 percent of dogs responded to the spray collar, while only 44.4 percent responded to electric shock collars.
If your pet barks when you don’t want him/her to, you might look into the humane solution available at KHS.
Carol A. Curran, Lihu‘e
