On Dec. 6 of last year, I was honored to take the oath as president of the Texas Association of Counties, a position I will hold for the next two years. In this article, I would like to introduce myself and talk a little about what TAC and county officials should be working on during this period.

I am in my sixth term as commissioner of Precinct Four in Tarrant County. While I serve in one of our state’s largest, most urban counties, those of you who know me already probably recognize that at heart, I have strong roots in rural Texas. I was raised in Lott (current population, about 870 or so) in Falls County, which is southwest of Waco. You could say that I began my “public” service in the agricultural community as a member of 4-H — I’m still proud of my eight years as a rodeo contestant participating in calf roping and team penning events. My point is that I believe I understand the way things work not only in the big city but also in our smaller counties as well.

Life took me to the Fort Worth area where I eventually retired from Southwestern Bell as a department manager after more than 30 years of service. While in that job, the voters of the town of Saginaw, which was about 10 miles northwest of Fort Worth in those days, elected me to serve on the city’s governing body, first as a council member for three years and then as mayor for six years. Now, of course, Fort Worth has grown over the years to almost surround Saginaw, so I’ve learned a bit about suburban Texas as well.

After being elected to my current position in 1986, among the honors bestowed on me was becoming the first county commissioner appointed by the governor to serve on the Texas Commission on Jail Standards. During the six years I served on that board, I came to appreciate the way that state government was intended to work hand in hand with local government on a common goal.

That’s enough about me but it does lead in to the topic of what TAC and counties need to be focusing on over the next couple of years. Going back to my time with the phone company, on the city council, at the courthouse and on a state agency board, it always seemed that the ultimate purpose was serving the public. We may have worn different uniforms, but essentially we knew we were on the same team, looking out for our common constituents to deliver services as efficiently and effectively as we could. We were partners.

But somehow over the past five years or so, some folks at the state and even the national government levels have forgotten about that “partnership” that always existed in years past. It seems like some leaders at the “higher” levels of government have come to think of us folks down on the front lines of delivering services as just another “interest group” — even though we do the hard work at ground zero while they set the major policies that drive what we do, some state legislators and federal officials somehow think we’re the ones trying to drive local taxes higher. They forget about the unfunded mandates they pass down to us and expect us to “cut, cut, cut” services that our local citizens expect to receive, just to implement their newest priorities.

I think it is time for all levels of government to get back to the roles the public expects of us – they don’t care who provides the services, they just want us (“the government”) to get the job done at the lowest possible cost. But that means that county officials (as well as our city brethren) need to start reminding state and federal officials that we’re all in this together. During the current campaign year, we need to continually make the point that the various levels of government are partners, not adversaries. And that should still be our message when the Texas Legislature convenes next year. None of us were elected to bicker and squabble. We need to produce results, on behalf of our common constituents.