All six commissioners currently serve as the E&R board and the county is among the minority in the state which still do it this way, they learned from county Assessor C. Shane Lynch at their meeting today.

The state Department of Revenue favors sitting an E&R board without commissioners, Lynch said.

Discussion of the matter came during County Manager Tony Brown's report and the consensus was more study was needed before coming to a decision.

When the E&R board is session its meetings are held before commissioners go into their regular meeting.

Commissioner Rives Manning said to keep it the way it is, explaining later in the discussion he felt it was part of the responsibility of a county commissioner.

Board Chair Vernon Bryant said he did not like the current configuration. Having a separate board of E&R, he said, “Would take away any conflict or perceived conflict,” the public might have about commissioners deciding their tax appeals.

He also said starting the board of E&R meetings before the regular commissioner meetings keeps the county department heads who attend for the regular meetings away from their work. “They really don't need to be a part of that. By sitting here, it's a waste of staff time. It's up for discussion. I feel strongly it should be separate.”

Brown said, looking at the matter, from the public's perspective, he could see how they could feel less stressful speaking before a smaller committee than having to speak to the commissioners.

Lynch said there have been cases when people with tax appeals decided to not attend because of the current process.

Commissioner Patrick Qualls said there are questions which need to be asked before going forward such as how much would the board be paid, how many members would make up the E&R board and would the county attorney be present.

Commissioner Rachel Hux said she believed there needs to be a separate board.

Commission Carolyn Johnson said she didn't have enough information to make a decision but said serving as an E&R board member was one of her least favorite things to do.

Before dismantling the board, she said, “We have to determine the budget. There are more questions that need to be answered.”

Commissioner Marcelle Smith also said it was one of his least favorite tasks. But, he said, he's not sure if it isn't part of the duties of a commissioner. “I'm not sure it's not normal business of the county. If you set up a separate board, how are you going to set it up? If you can come back and we have the support and we can make it happen,” he said he could consider it. “I don't know we can get a quality number of people if it's just volunteers.”

Bryant said it's not something the board has to do this year and suggested more information be presented before a final decision is made.

“I don't think we need to rush to do it this year,” Qualls said.