One More Hidden "Gift" in the Smithfield Town Council Appointments
"Billy Mays here, reminding you nothing happens by accident"...
Smithfield Town Council Appointments
As stated earlier this month, to our knowledge, there is nothing technically illegal about how Smithfield Town Council appointed two new members. That said, only a fool would believe the nonsense spewed by Randy Pack and Valerie Butler about the sanctity of their process to pick two people who had already been decided on before the first application review. In a recent letter, I pointed out that Raynard Gibbs was deliberately selected to fill Rountree’s seat instead of Hall’s seat because Valerie Butler did not want to be on the same election cycle as Gibbs if he is elected in November. Additionally, a second item was slipped into this process that was underhanded but seemingly legal. Gibbs was sworn in to fill the remainder of Rountree’s term, not until the next election (e.g., regardless of how November 2024 turns out, Gibbs will remain on Town Council until December 31, 2024, even if he is not elected in November). Meanwhile, Jim Collins, by law, will have to immediately vacate his seat upon certification of the November 2024 election if he is not elected to complete the remainder of Wayne Hall’s term. In short, Jim Collins, if he chooses to run, will have a special election in November 2024 and Raynard Gibbs, if he chooses to run, will not. While this may seem minor, consider that if this were applied to this year’s events, a lame-duck appointed member would have been able to vote on the final Grange approval and appoint two new council members. Maybe this was an oversight by the Town Attorney Bill Riddick and he never got clear intentions from the Town Council. However, given everything that has happened recently, he and the ruling majority have lost the benefit of the doubt.
A Glimmer of Hope from Richmond
A great friend of WTF forwarded this proposed legislation for the January General Assembly session to modify the appointment process for filling vacant offices. The new law would require “Requires the local governing body or elected school board making an interim appointment to fill a vacancy in the membership of such body or board to hold a public meeting at least seven days prior to making such appointment. The bill specifies that at such meeting, the body or board shall announce the names of all persons being proposed for the interim appointment and shall make available for inspection each person’s resume and any other materials required by the body or board.” While there is still concern about the “employment/personnel” loophole in the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, this would still be a welcome change.
Please contact your local representatives and ask them to support House Bill 69 (HB 69). All of IOW: Senator Emily Brewer, Smithfield/Western IOW: Delegate Otto Wachsmann, Windsor/Eastern IOW: Delegate Nadarius Clark.
By the way, nothing is stopping the Isle of Wight Board of Supervisors, Isle of Wight School Board, Smithfield Town Council, or Windsor Town Council from committing to this idea now instead of waiting for it to be mandated from Richmond.
Once again, a great review of events.