The state legislature has passed a bill allowing counties to reduce the number of county supervisors once prior to the next decennial census redistricting. It also allows for this reduction to be accomplished via petition and referendum. Governor Doyle is expected to sign the bill, reversing a previous stance.
Here's a chance for Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas to seize control of a reform issue and win back some conservative support. Vrakas had been one of those pushing for the governor to reverse himself on this issue and now Governor Doyle has. Vrakas can use his position to either cause the board to reduce its size, or he can lead the county in having a referendum on the issue.
The Waukesha County Board currently has 35 members. To put it in perspective, Milwaukee County only has 19 county supervisors. Dane County, currently at 37 members, is also considering dropping to 19 county supervisors.
In this age of freeways, highways and telecommunication, it doesn't make sense to continue to have such a large body of legislators to run a single county. When it was a horse and buggy ride from the farm to the county seat, you could see why the more rural areas might need a few more representatives to be able to contact them. Now all the large number of supervisors serves to do is keep more supervisors on the county expense sheet and keep the supervisors relatively anonymous.
A proposal to reduce the size of the board to 25 members after the 2000 census was defeated by the County Board 28-4. But with county board elections coming up, and with a significant number of retireees, now is the time for Vrakas to make the bold move to reform the County Board. It could be a brand new year for Vrakas.
