Editor, Gazette-Journal:

During the March 1 Board of Supervisors meeting, a yearlong discussion about converting county administration from a calendar year to a fiscal year resumed. The County Administrator suggested that proceeding with the conversion was not possible at this time, primarily due to objections from the Commissioner of Revenue and the Treasurer (both elected by the People of Gloucester and not present at the meeting). I will not speak to the efficacy of the calendar conversion, but will instead address something far more important; our elected leaders working as a team.

For the last several years we have noticed that all of our constitutional officers, except the commissioner of revenue, have appeared at public meetings when asked to do so or when there was a discussion that directly involves their responsibilities. Each time the commissioner has not appeared when expected, the excuse of being too busy with one thing or another has been given on his behalf by county staff. We are not sure if the commissioner of revenue and the treasurer were asked to be at the March 1 meeting, but we do feel they should have been there. After the meeting we were not only left with an unclear impression that it was their objections that led the county administrator to report the conversion not being possible at this time; we were also left confused and aggravated by our elected leaders not working together as a team.

What many of us do not feel some of our constitutional officers get is that We the People of Gloucester elected a team. We elected a school board, board of supervisors, treasurer, commissioner, court clerk, and sheriff. We elected each of you to act on our behalf and to work as a team in doing so. We certainly did not intend for any of you to use your elected status to operate independently or collectively in the shadows. We the People want to be informed and we want each constitutional officer to be completely open and honest with us and with each other. When county staff, other constitutional officers or the When the board of supervisors asks constitutional officers to appear or there is a public meeting topic that directly relates to their responsibilities, we want to see and hear from them.

We now challenge the commissioner of revenue and the treasurer to appear at the next board of supervisors meeting to provide the board and the people clarity and to publicly answer whatever questions the board may have. We also challenge, all of our local constitutional officers to begin working together, like We the People intended when we elected each of you.

Kenneth E. Hogge Sr.

Gloucester Point, Va.