By MARVIN HAMLETT
Editor
Fed up after being snubbed, Appomattox County supervisors agreed last Tuesday to research a method to strip policy-making powers from the Department of Social Services Board.
With a consensus backing him, Supervisor Gary Tanner asked County Attorney Johnnie Overstreet to determine the proper way to change the Social Services Board to an "advisory committee."
The flap occurred during the Thanksgiving holiday, when the Social Services Board allowed its employees to have a full day off that Wednesday, at the request of its employees.
Meanwhile, the rest of the County's employees were forced to work the full day on Thanksgiving Wednesday, creating some resentment from some local government workers.
The Appomattox County Board of Supervisors routinely adopts the same holiday schedule as set forth by the governor, who called for a half-day work schedule that Wednesday.
Now, the Social Services Board's insistence on granting the extra holiday time may cost the group its policy-making authority.
Supervisor Tanner read aloud a resolution that was approved on consensus. The resolution read:
"... Due to the recent actions of the Social Services Board and their unwillingness to follow the Board of Supervisors decision concerning the holiday schedule as set forth by the Appomattox County Board of Supervisors, I request that (Overstreet) research and report back to this Body (Appomattox County Board of Supervisors) what steps are needed to change the status of the Social Services Board to an ‘Advisory Only Board,' with no policy making authority."
Overstreet agreed, and he later told the Times-Virginian that he expects to present those details during the supervisors' next meeting on Monday, Feb. 6.
It remains to be seen if the Supervisors forge ahead to strip the Social Services Board of its policy-making power.
The Social Services Board currently consists of Sam Carter, Nelson Mann and Roberta Womack.
Carter is also a member of the Board of Supervisors.
The Appomattox County Board of Supervisors appoints the three-member Social Services Board, one of which may be a member of the Board of Supervisors.
The County pays each member of the Social Services Board $900 annually, so a taxpayer savings could also be in motion if the Supervisors change the makeup of the group.
According to County Administrator Aileen Ferguson, the Social Services Board's responsibilities are "to monitor the formulation and implementation on social welfare matters and make recommendations."
The Social Services Board meets once a month, usually on the fourth Tuesday of each month.
The flap about the Thanksgiving holiday was first approached in November, when former supervisor Thomas Conrad brought up the issue.
Conrad, a two-term supervisor who chose not to seek re-election, said on Nov. 7: "We try to develop a budget that's not too tough on people. We try to spend as little as possible and still provide services."
But it was obvious that the money-savings was less important than all county agencies being on the same page.
Conrad then questioned whether or not the Social Services Board was mandated.
"Do we actually need this?" Conrad asked. "We could have an advisory board."
Conrad then accused the Social Services Board of attempting "to usurp what the Board of Supervisors advises for the employees of the County."
"It does nothing for morale," Conrad said. "We could think of seriously alienating the Social Services Board and improving ourselves in the County."
Ferguson said her office has not received any feedback from the Department of Social Services since Conrad's statements.
Last Tuesday, the Supervisors approved Mann for another four-year term on a 4-1 vote, with Supervisor Chairman Jerry Small casting the lone dissenting vote because of Tanner's request to Overstreet.
Mann's term will expire on Dec. 31, 2015.
Womack's term will expire on June 30, 2012.
Carter's term will expire on June 30, 2013.