I've actively covered meetings of the Hancock County Commission for close to five years now. In the years prior, there would be the occasional trip to New Cumberland if one of our other reporters needed some assistance.
In all that time, I don't remember even seeing as many people attend a commission meeting as there were this past Thursday.
Commission meetings have been held in Courtroom 1 for some time now, but, typically, attendance still consists of county department heads, local media, and maybe a couple of residents or representatives of outside agencies. Walking in Thursday afternoon, there were already a couple dozen people sitting in the gallery, with more coming in with each passing minute. Instead of my customary position in the gallery's front row, I opted for a seat in the jury box.
People are angry about these possible budget cuts, and, quite frankly, many of them are justified in that anger.
Commissioners announced during their Feb. 27 meeting they would have a special meeting, followed by a workshop March 7. I'll be honest, I forgot about it and didn't attend, so I certainly wasn't expecting to receive a press release that afternoon announcing plans for budget cuts.
There were quite a few members of Hancock County's emergency services community in attendance Thursday, and one of the common threads in their comments was that they learned of these potential cuts, not from commissioners or department heads, but from the news reports and social media posts last weekend.
I understand there are budgetary issues going on. If we pay attention to just about every local government, there are concerns about planning for the next fiscal year as they look at revenue being lost from the closure of Cleveland-Cliffs, increased costs, changes in state law and how certain revenues are distributed - Brooke County might not be receiving as much money from oil and gas production and Hancock County continues to be concerned about limited video lottery funds.
It's definitely an issue, and one that will be at the forefront for some time.
But communication needs to be key in these types of situations. I'm not privy to every conversation that takes place in the Hancock County Courthouse. I don't know what, or how many, discussions have been held concerning the budget. Most governmental entities hold a series of workshops to craft a budget. Hancock County appears to have only held the one, on a Friday, three weeks before the budget is due to the state Auditor's Office.
It's not a good look to cram everything into one meeting, if that is, in fact, the way it has been done.
It also isn't a good look for a press release to be sent out before employees were notified of these proposed cuts.
Commissioners did attempt to alleviate some of the anxiety Thursday, staying after the regular meeting to hold a town hall with the residents gathered. To their credit, they noted the budget isn't complete, and adjustments are still possible which might not require as steep of cuts as have been proposed. This could mean an additional workshop or two before the commission's next meeting on March 27.
That needs to happen, and they need to make certain those meetings are posted on the county's website and social media pages, and not just through a piece of paper hanging outside of the Commission Office.
The people of Hancock County, whether they are law enforcement, volunteer firefighters, or everyday citizens, deserve to know what is being done with their tax dollars.
(Howell, a resident of Colliers, is managing editor of The Weirton Daily Times, and can be contacted at chowell@weirtondailytimes.com or followed on Twitter/X @CHowellWDT)