Blaine County would benefit from a county administrator system of government, but a consultant hired to assess the need says now is not the time to create such a position.
Stan McNutt, who has 32 years of experience in governmental management work, was hired as an interim Blaine County administrator in January. His primary job was to determine whether Blaine County should establish a county administrator system to assist the commissioners with their workload and improve the overall performance of the county.
He presented his findings last week during a county leadership workshop and government coordination seminar in the Old County Courthouse in Hailey.
In his report, McNutt concluded that the "commission is overburdened with very important county legislative projects, regional planning and carrying out state mandated responsibilities. Just keeping up with growth and the times has become an exhausting task."
Due to those and other circumstances, the county is in need of an administrator "but at this point in time the county is not ready," he said.
McNutt claims the current commissioners "have not yet been exposed to, and thus do not fully understand, the changes necessary to make the county administrator system effective."
Furthermore, the county is not ready fiscally and politically.
"A county administrator was not budgeted for the full fiscal year 2005-2006," McNutt wrote. He also cautioned that "The political will has not been firmly established in such a manner as to attract qualified candidates for the position."
McNutt believes the county elections in November 2006—when two of the three seats on the Blaine County Commission will be open—will change that political will.
But McNutt added that "Blaine County has the opportunity to become the most progressive, professionally managed small county in Idaho," and he laid out a plan for success in the future.
Beginning immediately, McNutt recommends that the commissioners prepare an "Evolution of Local Governance" chapter to be added to the Blaine County 2025 comprehensive planning document. He also recommends proposing the idea to the public and letting the voters determine the outcome.
Ideally, McNutt feels the county should create a central administration system that would eventually transition into a county manager position.
The primary difference between the two is that a county administrator seldom has the authority to appoint and remove employees, but a county manager does.
Blaine County Commission Chairwoman Sarah Michael seemed to agree with McNutt's findings, saying she believes "it's more complicated than just hiring a county administrator."
She noted that Idaho law limits the authority of a county administrator, and that "we need to have all the pieces in place to support a centralized administration."
McNutt said, "There are plenty of options for the county, but the county has not yet met to give me a response."
McNutt said he will stay on and assist in the process as long as he is needed, which he thinks will probably be until the end of March.
The commissioners had planned to discuss McNutt's report on Tuesday, but delayed the discussion until Thursday, March 9, at 11 a.m. The meeting, in the Old County Courthouse, is open to the public.
