 Best Practices, City-County Awards Honor Local Successes
Counties have two upcoming opportunities
to gain recognition for innovative programs, exceptional delivery of services, outstanding achievements and successful collaboration.
Nominations for the TAC Leadership Foundation County Best Practices Awards are due May 15. These awards give counties and county leaders the chance to be recognized for their achievements in the areas of safety and corrections, health and human services,
finance and general
management, community
improvement and technology.
In past years, Best Practices Awards were given for a web-based crime mapping program, a motor vehicle inventory tracking system, a senior activity center and an early intervention
program for children in foster care.
Nominated programs must have been completed (or ongoing programs demonstrated significant results) within
the year 2006, and must be replicable
in other counties. An interactive nomination form is available online at www.county.org/cms/leader/practices.asp. For more information, call Kali O’Neill at 800-456-5974 or email kalio@
county.org.
For the second year, TAC and the Texas Municipal League will together present
the City-County Cooperation Awards, which showcase programs in which city and county governments collaborated to meet the challenges of local government. Some areas
of consideration are innovative problem solving, excellence in management, increasing
citizen participation and achieving higher
service levels. Last year the City of Weatherford
and Parker County received an award for a Special Crimes Unit. Burleson County and the City of Somerville were honored for two County Health Resource Centers.
Nominations for the City-County Awards must be received at TML by mail no later than May 4. The programs must have shown significant results between Nov. 1, 2005 and May 1, 2007. Information on the City-County Cooperation nomination process
is available online at www.tml.org/pdf/2007tacawardsbrochure.pdf. Mail entries to TML City-County Cooperation Awards Program, 1821 Rutherford Lane, Suite 400, Austin, Texas 78754-5128. For information call Karla Vining at 512-231-7400.
The awards are presented at a gala ceremony
held during TAC’s Annual Conference
in August. They will also be featured in a special section of the September/October issue of County magazine.
Develop-Connect-Progress at the
TAC Annual Conference
 In addition to the traditional focus on recently enacted legislation, TAC’s 2007 Annual Conference will feature programs that promote efficiency, communication with other officials and enhancing public services under the theme “Develop-Connect-Progress.”
The sessions offered at this year’s event will help attendees:
- DEVELOP new ways of doing business so counties can keep up in today’s fast-paced, instant-gratification world;
- CONNECT with other county officials who are equally dedicated to public service; and
- PROGRESS with plans to serve the public better and more efficiently.
As noted, the program will continue to highlight legislative changes. For each county office, affiliate organizations will hold separate briefings, explaining how new laws affect their particular offices.
The host hotel for this year’s conference is the Hilton Hotel. TAC will make hotel reservations for all registrants as soon as the registration form is received. Now is the time to go online to TAC’s Website, www.county.org, and register for the meeting.
NACo Caucus Gets Underway
More than 50 commissioners court member
heard an overview of the federal legislative
activities of the National Association of Counties at the first meeting of the Texas NACo Leadership Caucus Feb. 13 at the County Judges & Commissioners Education
Seminar.
 Texas members of NACo steering committees
discussed issues their groups have pursued, including rural transportation, lack of Medicaid reimbursement for jail inmates, mental health, community development block grants and payments-in-lieu-of-taxes for counties with large federal holdings such as parks or military bases.
Denton County Clerk Cynthia Mitchell, who is chairing TAC’s NACo Membership Committee, encouraged
all Texas counties to join the national organization as a way to change the focus more toward a Texas point of view.
“The more Texans take part in NACo, the more their national
positions are going to reflect the way we think,” Mitchell said.
Agreeing was Tarrant
County Judge Glen Whitley, who is running for NACo Second Vice President this year.“Those who show up are the ones who set the priorities and define the solutions,” Whitley said.
In addition to legislative matters, there was considerable discussion of NACo’s prescription drug program
which allows local citizens to participate in discount purchases at no cost to the county (see article on page 46).
Former Dallas County
Commissioner Roy Orr, who is a former NACo president, pointed
out that almost half of Texas counties are not NACo members. “If we had 100 percent participation,
Texas could control
NACo,” Orr said.
Mitchell noted that there is no other group representing counties
in Washington D. C.
“There are no bigger cheerleaders for counties than NACo and TAC,” she said.
Building Links
is Theme of May 2-4 Management Institute
While counties build and maintain numerous bridges across Texas,
this year’s TAC County Management Institute theme, “Building
Bridges,” is using the term metaphorically to describe ways to link county offices within their community.
As usual, the 3-day event is an opportunity for all county officials
and key staff who would like to improve their supervisory skills, learn team-building techniques and inspire their employees to greater efforts.
In addition, this year’s theme will focus on building bridges: bridges between supervisors and staff, bridges between one county office and another, as well as bridges between county government and the public.
Sessions will focus on how to reduce stress and resentment among courthouse staff, ease tensions and jealousies among county officials, and diminish misconceptions and rumors among constituents.
The quickest way to register for the County Management Institute
is to visit the Education Center at www.county.org. Rooms are still available at the host hotel, the Austin Doubletree Hotel at 6505 North IH 35. Call 800-347-0330 or 512-454-3737 for reservations.
For reduced rates, mention “Texas Association of Counties
County Management Institute.”
While counties build and maintain numerous bridges across Texas,
this year’s TAC County Management Institute theme, “Building
Bridges,” is using the term metaphorically to describe ways to link county offices within their community.
As usual, the 3-day event is an opportunity for all county officials
and key staff who would like to improve their supervisory skills, learn team-building techniques and inspire their employees to greater efforts.
In addition, this year’s theme will focus on building bridges: bridges between supervisors and staff, bridges between one county office and another, as well as bridges between county government and the public.
Sessions will focus on how to reduce stress and resentment among courthouse staff, ease tensions and jealousies among county officials, and diminish misconceptions and rumors among constituents.
The quickest way to register for the County Management Institute
is to visit the Education Center at www.county.org. Rooms are still available at the host hotel, the Austin Doubletree Hotel at 6505 North IH 35. Call 800-347-0330 or 512-454-3737 for reservations.
For reduced rates, mention “Texas Association of Counties
County Management Institute.”
Health Benefits Pool
Announces “Partners in Pooling 2007”
TAC’s Health and Employee Benefits Pool is offering training
for county officials and staff members who handle the enrollment,
day-to-day contact or billing for each pool county. This is HEBP’s opportunity to demonstrate to its members how the pool works to the benefit of all members across the state.
This meeting will:
- Provide a briefing about the pooling process and how it works for counties;
- Establish administrative best practices;
- Demonstrate online tools regarding the enrollment and administration of the pool health plans;
- Reduce administrative errors; and
- Explain the plan rules.
The briefing will be held at the TAC Events Center in Austin,
May 15-16, 2007. One night’s lodging and one meal will be provided. Pool members will receive details by mail.
Counties Visit Capitol April 25
Texas legislators, state capitol staff and local leaders are all invited to attend a TAC-sponsored barbecue on the Texas Capitol
grounds on April 25, in celebration of County Government Week.
The BBQ will be coming to Austin special
from Buppy’s BBQ in College Station. It will be served from noon - 1:30 p.m.
Officials and those visiting the Capitol building that week can also take the time to learn about counties’ success stories in delivery
of services, technology innovation and community improvement, as TAC has created
an updated display featuring several of its Best Practices Awards winners from the past two years. The display, similar to the one featured during County Government Week and at TAC conferences two years ago, utilizes photographs and short written summaries of the chosen programs to highlight the achievements of rural, suburban and urban counties from around the state.
In celebration of the week, the Legislature will adopt a resolution supporting county government. TAC will also host a legislative reception.
County Government Week is a national event “created to raise public awareness and understanding about the roles and responsibilities of the nation’s counties,” according to the National Association of Counties, which released a guidebook for counties wanting to participate locally in the national promotions. The national theme for this year’s week is “Protecting the Environment,” though county officials can instead choose to create their own local theme.
According to NACo, “counties can show their residents the many ways they work to protect and enhance the health, welfare and safety of their citizens in sensible and cost-effective ways. In the activities they plan, counties can present how they encourage energy efficient commercial development, use of fuel-efficient vehicles, promote energy efficiency in county buildings, recycle paper and other waste and work to protect the national
environment for their counties.”
In celebration of the week, the Legislature will adopt a resolution supporting county government. TAC will also host a legislative reception. County Government Week is a national event “created to raise public awareness and understanding about the roles and responsibilities of the nation’s counties,” according to the National Association of Counties, which released a guidebook for counties wanting to participate locally in the national promotions. The national theme for this year’s week is “Protecting the Environment,” though county officials can instead choose to create their own local theme.
According to NACo, “counties can show their residents the many ways they work to protect and enhance the health, welfare and safety of their citizens in sensible and cost-effective ways. In the activities they plan, counties can present how they encourage energy efficient commercial development, use of fuel-efficient vehicles, promote energy efficiency in county buildings, recycle paper and other waste and work to protect the national
environment for their counties.”
Other ideas for celebrating County Government
Week include hosting an open house at the county courthouse;
scheduling tours of the county facilities; creating
informational displays for malls, libraries and other public areas; having local leaders give presentations on civic involvement and how government works to classrooms;
and organizing an essay writing or poster making
contest in which youth describe the ways county services impact their lives.
Officials can get more advice on planning and holding a successful County Government Week from the NACo website at www.naco.org. More information on County Government Week events at the Capitol building can be found in upcoming editions of the TAC publication County Issues and on the TAC website at www.county.org.
County Officials Appointed to TAC Boards
The TAC Board of Directors recently approved President Marc Hamlin’s new appointments to the following boards:
Workers’ Compensation Board
Trinity County Judge
Mark Evans
Unemployment Compensation Board
Hidalgo County Treasurer
Norma Garcia
Lubbock County Commissioner
Patti Jones
County Government Risk Management
Houston County Sheriff
Darrell Bobbitt
Rockwall County Commissioner
Jerry Wimpee
Property and Casualty Pool
Yoakum County Judge
Jim Barron
Erath County Judge
Tab Thompson
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