For years, Guilford County Commissioner Kay Cashion has been the most engaged commissioner when it comes to participating in state and national local government associations, but lately many other members of the Guilford County Board have been getting in on the act.
At the Board of Commissioners Thursday, Sept. 15 meeting, a large number of appointments were announced that demonstrate the board is taking part more and more in county matters at the national level.
Guilford County touted the accomplishments in a press release the day after the meeting.
The National Association of Counties (NACo) has named not one, not two, not three, and not even four – but five Guilford County Commissioners to serve on committees, advisory boards, and task forces with national concerns.
NACo brings county officials together from across the United States in order to promote common interests such as finding the best practices for county governments and petitioning the federal government for changes in policies and laws that county leaders would like to see made.
Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston said this week that he’s delighted the residents in Guilford County are now “strongly represented” in the national debate.
Alston offered “Kudos to all of our Commissioners for representing Guilford County in such an impeccable fashion.”
The chairman said he knows that the current board has a lot of talent and knowledge and he’s very pleased that county leaders at the national level are recognizing that.
NACo President Denise Winfrey made the appointments, which means that now a majority of the nine-member Board of Commissioners are taking part in the national political scene.
Commissioners Cashion, Carlvena Foster, Mary Beth Murphy and Carly Cooke will serve on the Women of NACo leadership network, which has a mission of enhancing “the effectiveness of female county officials” and getting women to seek more leadership positions in their communities, local government and inside NACo.
Cashion will also serve as the vice chair of NACo’s Arts and Culture Committee as well as on the Large Urban Counties Caucus and on the Justice and Public Safety Committee.
Commissioner James Upchurch was appointed to the Finance, Pensions, and Intergovernmental Affairs Steering Committee.
That committee is responsible for “facilitating national-level discussions on major developments in county best practices and national policy issues of interest to the committee, such as the financial resources of counties, fiscal management, federal assistance, municipal borrowing, county revenues, federal budget, federal tax reform, elections and Native American issues.”
Upchurch said it was a “humbling opportunity” to be able to collaborate with other county officials from across the country to find “common ground that helps us improve the quality of life for all our residents.”
Each of the groups will meet virtually every month before convening in the nation’s capital for the 2023 NACo Legislative Conference in February and the NACo Annual Conference in Austin next July.
Lol…they sure do a great job taking care of Guilford County citizens…..lol again.
We need to keep our county business here. I don’t give a s___ how other counties do theirs. Vote Alan Branson for at large. Less government, less taxes.
The “rule of the committee” applies here: If anything is any good, everyone will jump in and ruin it.
These appointments are to provide a free trip out of Guilford County. With virtual meetings, why travel at taxpayers’ expense. The trend is to make everything the same nationwide, e.g., education and ordinances. Eliminating the Department of Education and getting rid of teachers’ unions is a start. Even FDR understood the limits of unionization.
Just make me King of Guilford County.