3 Important Roles in Local Goverment
By Raiana Kelly AADM Contributing Writer
June 2019, there were several Athens-Clarke County government officials whose terms became eligible for renewal. Our current City Manager, Blaine Williams, and Internal Auditor, Stephanie Maddox, were both up for renewal. Additionally, our City Attorney, Bill Berryman, will be retiring on June 30. As citizens of Athens, it’s in our best interest to be aware of the roles and responsibilities of our government officials and to get involved especially with several seats coming up in 2020, now is a great time to begin reviewing their roles and responsibilities. The appointees for each of the positions of the above play a vital role in the day-to-day operations of ACC Unified Government.
Directed by and supporting the activities of our mayor and commission, our city manager is responsible for implementing all policies, programs, contracts, ordinances, and resolutions. This includes the preparation of proposed annual budgets, advising our commission on financial needs, and creating and implementing standards of administrative, management, and operating practices and procedures to be followed by all offices. Our city manager is also responsible for the appointment and removal of all department heads.
Working with the Office of Operational Analysis (OOA), our internal auditor is responsible for measuring the efficiency, adequacy, and effectiveness of all departments by conducting a continuous internal audit of the fiscal affairs and operations of every department, office, and agency of the ACC Unified Government. Our internal auditor’s enhancement of the government’s credibility to the public is completed through risk assessments, evaluation of resource allocation, and the identification of the needs of all operating departments, including opportunities for improvements, in order to recommend broad initiatives and modifications. The final report produced by our internal auditor is released to the entire audit committee, the audited department, our city manager, mayor, clerk of commission, and city attorney to be approved by our mayor and commission at the next voting meeting.
Our city attorney provides legal services, including the prosecution and defense of lawsuits, to our mayor and commission, our city manager, constitutional officers, and all other departments and divisions of ACC Unified Government. Additionally, our city attorney is responsible for prosecuting violations of the ACC Code of Ordinances, researching and drafting ordinances and resolutions to be considered for adoption by our mayor and commission, and communicating with federal and state agencies in order to ensure compliance with all federal and state laws and regulations.
Meaningful change starts small, with citizens like you and I exercising our civic duty to engage in local politics. Without the valuable input of our citizens, our government is unable to accurately represent us and meet our needs. For citizens to make informed decisions about the public servants that represent us, there needs to be transparency and active engagement between our government and community when appointing individuals to fulfill these roles.
So I encourage you to get involved by attending the Mayor and Commission monthly sessions normally held the first Tuesday of every month and start at 6:00 pm in City Hall. This is a great opportunity for the citizens of Athens to watch their government officials in action, to also learn about the various goals of our government and to provide the essential citizen input our government needs to thrive.