The Issues Impacting Boone County
As a candidate for County Commission, I believe it is important that you understand my position on the major issues confronting Boone County. Following is an initial list of issues, both longer and shorter term, and my perspective on them. As questions or other specific topics occur to you, please let me know. I’ll add to the list below. It’s a work in progress…
Long-Term, Long-Standing Issues:
Our Governmental Structure
Boone County is a first class, non-charter county. Its organizational structure is vastly different from that of the City of Columbia, which is a charter, mayor/city manager form of government. In Boone County, while the County Commission has authority over all of the county’s facilities and property and establishes the annual budget, the Commission has ten independently elected, co-equal colleagues who are not under the supervision or control of the Commission. For County government to function, these thirteen colleagues must understand and work in the best interest of the people of Boone County, often putting aside personal interests in favor of the common good. Furthermore, Boone County continues to be limited in its ability to promulgate regulations since until or unless the Legislature specifically authorizes that power to the county, it cannot be utilized.
The County Budget
One of the primary responsibilities of the County Commission is to approve the annual budget, much of which is built on sales tax revenues. Of importance to the county, in 2018, for the first time ever, over 50% of sales occurred online. Even before the economic downturn related to COVID-19, Boone County was experiencing a significant loss of sales tax revenue due to the failure, on the state and local level, to capture taxes on online sales. Although voters had authorized taxes at various levels, revenue is collected only on local sales. Since over half of all sales occur remotely, this means that the services that our taxes support are now under-funded.
The United States Supreme Court laid out a path for states to effectuate its “Wayfair” decision, which would allow the collection of online, remote sales tax revenue, yet, the Missouri state legislature has not taken the steps necessary to make this path accessible. As a result, remote sellers are making sales that could have been made by the brick-and-mortar stores in our community. Further, no taxes are being collected on the vast majority of those remote sales and, although the companies making the sales are utilizing local infrastructure for package delivery, they are not supporting, through taxes, the maintenance of that infrastructure. With over 50% of sales occurring online, this is the best—and easiest—way to boost lagging sales tax revenues.
The United States Supreme Court laid out a path for states to effectuate its “Wayfair” decision, which would allow the collection of online, remote sales tax revenue, yet, the Missouri state legislature has not taken the steps necessary to make this path accessible. As a result, remote sellers are making sales that could have been made by the brick-and-mortar stores in our community. Further, no taxes are being collected on the vast majority of those remote sales and, although the companies making the sales are utilizing local infrastructure for package delivery, they are not supporting, through taxes, the maintenance of that infrastructure. With over 50% of sales occurring online, this is the best—and easiest—way to boost lagging sales tax revenues.
Our Criminal Justice System
Too often in this country, instead of being linked to supportive services, individuals with chronic mental illness become involved in the criminal justice system and, once detained in our county jails, these individuals most often stay longer and have significantly worse outcomes. Law enforcement and other first responders become de facto mental health workers, leaving less time for them to do the jobs for which they are both hired and trained. We must direct and target our increasingly scarce resources to ensure that our community remains safe; that we utilize those resources efficiently and appropriately; and that individuals with chronic mental illness experience the best outcomes possible for both themselves and the county as a whole. This is why I have devoted a great deal of attention, as a County Commissioner, to addressing these issues. With more than half (54%) of our General Fund budget devoted to the county’s criminal justice system, we must improve our budgetary efficiency while continually and simultaneously improving county services.
> Read more about county involvement in the Federal Medicaid Inmate Exclusion Policy here.
> Read more about Boone County's Stepping Up Initiative here.
> Read more about Boone County's addressing criminal justice challenges for those with mental health issues.
> Read more about the collaborative efforts of Boone County to curtail criminal recidivism.
> Read more about county involvement in the Federal Medicaid Inmate Exclusion Policy here.
> Read more about Boone County's Stepping Up Initiative here.
> Read more about Boone County's addressing criminal justice challenges for those with mental health issues.
> Read more about the collaborative efforts of Boone County to curtail criminal recidivism.
Boone Hospital
The Boone Hospital Board of Trustees is preparing for an enormous change in the organizational structure of a hospital that began life as the County Hospital. The Board is committed to the hospital becoming a stand-alone entity. For this model to succeed, the Board must gain support of local physicians as well as the community at large. The Board must also navigate an ever-changing medical landscape, in which, to survive and thrive, hospitals must take on different roles. Boone Countians can benefit from the success of Boone Hospital and the co-existence of all of our local hospitals. This wealth of medical resources positions Boone County as a regional hub for medical services. While the management decisions regarding Boone Hospital fall to the elected Board of Trustees, it falls to the Commission to protect the major asset owned by the County of Boone.
For the people of Boone County to continue to enjoy choice in quality medical care, we must actively support the hard work of the Trustees as they transition from the lease with BJC to a stand-alone hospital. At the same time, the Trustees must engage with the physician community to ensure their commitment to the ongoing health and viability of Boone Hospital and must work with MU Hospital administration to coordinate the best care for all who live within or come to our community.
> Read more about the future of Boone Hospital here.
For the people of Boone County to continue to enjoy choice in quality medical care, we must actively support the hard work of the Trustees as they transition from the lease with BJC to a stand-alone hospital. At the same time, the Trustees must engage with the physician community to ensure their commitment to the ongoing health and viability of Boone Hospital and must work with MU Hospital administration to coordinate the best care for all who live within or come to our community.
> Read more about the future of Boone Hospital here.
Transparency and Inter-Relationships
Decisions made in the offices of the Boone County Commission affect every jurisdiction in the county and affect most of the organizations and agencies located here. Similarly, decisions made in the offices of the MU President, the Centralia Mayor, the Southern Boone Superintendent of Schools, or the Columbia Chamber of Commerce impact their sister organizations and agencies throughout the county. The ripple effects of each vary in size but they are felt. Communication—open and honest—is necessary at all levels to ensure that the impact on others is known and considered as policies are created and projects are implemented. The County Commission does not have the luxury of a singular focus. Its often competing constituencies mean that decisions reached are rarely universally popular, but we cannot—and should not—work in isolation or in an echo chamber of limited interests. Our focus must be to enable county policies and services that best meet the needs of all our county’s citizens.
The County Commission has in place processes by which its actions can be viewed and reviewed by the public so that transparency and its sister attribute—accountability—can be maintained. Only when clearly within the parameters of an exception to open meetings, such as a contractual negotiation or a personnel matter, should a meeting or a record be closed.
One way to improve transparency would be to insist that all email communication involving county issues by commissioners occur using county, not private, email addresses.
> Read more on Janet's Leadership Principles here.
> Read more about the county's partnership with National Association of Counties (NACo) here.
> Read more about Commissioner accountability and conflict of interest here.
The County Commission has in place processes by which its actions can be viewed and reviewed by the public so that transparency and its sister attribute—accountability—can be maintained. Only when clearly within the parameters of an exception to open meetings, such as a contractual negotiation or a personnel matter, should a meeting or a record be closed.
One way to improve transparency would be to insist that all email communication involving county issues by commissioners occur using county, not private, email addresses.
> Read more on Janet's Leadership Principles here.
> Read more about the county's partnership with National Association of Counties (NACo) here.
> Read more about Commissioner accountability and conflict of interest here.
Local Control
Boone County is one of 114 counties in Missouri. Its needs and priorities are not necessarily the same as those in other counties. The people of Boone County should be allowed to exert local control over many aspects of our corporate life, rather than having legislators from other parts of the state impose their will upon our county.
Boone County is a first-class non-charter county with a vibrant, knowledgeable population. Boone Countians deserve to be heard and their will should not be ignored by state legislators who are more concerned with the will of constituents in other counties. Questions of land use and rental housing standards, for example, are most appropriately addressed locally on behalf of those most immediately impacted.
Boone County is a first-class non-charter county with a vibrant, knowledgeable population. Boone Countians deserve to be heard and their will should not be ignored by state legislators who are more concerned with the will of constituents in other counties. Questions of land use and rental housing standards, for example, are most appropriately addressed locally on behalf of those most immediately impacted.
Broadband Internet Access
Before COVID-19 hit, we knew that the adequacy of internet access across Boone County varied greatly from place to place, road to road, and neighborhood to neighborhood. Since March 2020, the differences in access have showcased enormous disparities for Boone Countians, from students whose studies are conducted virtually rather than in physical classrooms, to telecommuting workers, to individuals seeking employment, to those simply seeking online access to the larger world. The County Commission has made CARES Act funding available to all of the school districts in Boone County for the purchase of 1,345 hotspots to begin to mitigate the disparities in access. This is only a partial solution, however––a bandaid for a far larger problem.
Boone Countians deserve a coordinated, accountable, transparent, public and private sector response, similar to the federal Telecommunications Act of 1934 that made telephone service ubiquitous, even in remote rural areas. While the Telecommunications Act of 1996 expanded the traditional goal of universal service to include high-speed internet, that goal is far from realized. To reach our full economic potential, Boone County citizens need universal access to broadband internet services, regardless of where they live or work.
Boone Countians deserve a coordinated, accountable, transparent, public and private sector response, similar to the federal Telecommunications Act of 1934 that made telephone service ubiquitous, even in remote rural areas. While the Telecommunications Act of 1996 expanded the traditional goal of universal service to include high-speed internet, that goal is far from realized. To reach our full economic potential, Boone County citizens need universal access to broadband internet services, regardless of where they live or work.
Transportation Infrastructure
Over the last two years, as I worked with a group of individuals from throughout Boone County to create projects and events celebrating our county’s bicentennial, I became ever more aware of the importance of transportation infrastructure to the development of community. When Native Americans were the sole two-legged inhabitants of what would become Missouri and Boone County, the transportation network included the rivers and trails, among them what we have come to call the Boone’s Lick Trail. As early settlers from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia moved to the area, they used the same transportation network. Through time, populations grew and expanded across the area with the addition of new transportation networks. Trails became roads and later highways and railroads became a vital part of moving people, livestock and goods. Through the latter half of the 20th century and thus far in the 21st century, the local transportation network has been dominated by the road and bridge system, with local and state organizations dividing the responsibility for maintaining existing roads and bridges, improving them when safety and economics demand or permit, and creating new infrastructure when possible.
This is a core function both of state and local government—ensuring that the road and bridge system is both safe and drivable. Of course, that function and the extent to which any agency can move beyond mere maintenance into improvement or creation, is entirely dependent upon the existence of resources to fund the work. And in a time in which costs for material (concrete, gravel, etc.) and equipment (graders, dump trucks, etc.) are skyrocketing, decisions are based upon not only safety and drivability but also upon the availability and cost of resources. This means that balances must be struck. Keeping every road and bridge safe and drivable is our first priority, while we must wisely allocate scarce funds according to the number of people who would directly benefit from further infrastructure development.
Our transportation infrastructure is the lifeblood of our community and must be supported with adequate funding. Unfortunately, the sales tax revenue that was intended to not only maintain but improve that infrastructure has declined, while the costs of materials and equipment continue to climb, putting our ability to meet this core responsibility at risk.
This is a core function both of state and local government—ensuring that the road and bridge system is both safe and drivable. Of course, that function and the extent to which any agency can move beyond mere maintenance into improvement or creation, is entirely dependent upon the existence of resources to fund the work. And in a time in which costs for material (concrete, gravel, etc.) and equipment (graders, dump trucks, etc.) are skyrocketing, decisions are based upon not only safety and drivability but also upon the availability and cost of resources. This means that balances must be struck. Keeping every road and bridge safe and drivable is our first priority, while we must wisely allocate scarce funds according to the number of people who would directly benefit from further infrastructure development.
Our transportation infrastructure is the lifeblood of our community and must be supported with adequate funding. Unfortunately, the sales tax revenue that was intended to not only maintain but improve that infrastructure has declined, while the costs of materials and equipment continue to climb, putting our ability to meet this core responsibility at risk.
Economic Health
In general, until COVID-19 struck, Boone County was enjoying an enviable level of economic health, with a very low unemployment rate and much activity in both the public and private sectors. As usual, the economy was not equally kind to everyone, but since March, we have seen economic hardship across many, if not most, sectors. In July, I was invited to be part of a focus group (eight counties from across the country) organized by the National Association of Counties (NACo) to look at the impact of COVID-19 on the economic health of our various communities. We discussed common issues, insights and solutions with the goal of sharing best practices and advocating for resources that could make recovery possible in our own communities.
As part of this effort I held multiple conversations with a cross-section of individuals representing the various sectors of our county’s business community. While constant contact with the business community goes with the job of County Commissioner, this focused effort allowed me to gain a much more in-depth insight into the unique impact and resulting needs of each economic sector. My goal is to better understand the challenges and potential solutions for each of those sectors as we move forward. Improving our county’s economic health is a long-term work in progress, but I am confident that together we can rebound.
[You will read several references to the National Association of Counties (NACo) throughout my description of the issues in which I am involved. Thanks in large part to former County Commissioner Karen Miller’s leadership in the national organization, Boone County enjoys the support, knowledge, best practices, and resources associated with our ongoing affiliation with NACo. I am continually thankful for the opportunities my involvement in the organization brings to the citizens of Boone County.]
As part of this effort I held multiple conversations with a cross-section of individuals representing the various sectors of our county’s business community. While constant contact with the business community goes with the job of County Commissioner, this focused effort allowed me to gain a much more in-depth insight into the unique impact and resulting needs of each economic sector. My goal is to better understand the challenges and potential solutions for each of those sectors as we move forward. Improving our county’s economic health is a long-term work in progress, but I am confident that together we can rebound.
[You will read several references to the National Association of Counties (NACo) throughout my description of the issues in which I am involved. Thanks in large part to former County Commissioner Karen Miller’s leadership in the national organization, Boone County enjoys the support, knowledge, best practices, and resources associated with our ongoing affiliation with NACo. I am continually thankful for the opportunities my involvement in the organization brings to the citizens of Boone County.]
Children's Services
Although many people in Boone County are only tangentially aware of the existence of the Children’s Services Fund, which was approved by voters in 2012, it has effected a fundamental change in our county and has become one of the most talked-about and nationally-emulated aspects of our community. Through this fund, Boone County has:
(1) provided mental health screenings for every school-age child, and, for children in mental health crisis, has connected those children with services;
(2) created the Family Access Center for Excellence (FACE), which allows teachers, family members and law enforcement to refer children and families to FACE rather than into the Juvenile Justice System;
(3) provided funding for programs throughout the county, including the Boys & Girls Club, the Food Bank and its Buddy Pack Program, the Bridge, and countless other projects that enhance the lives of Boone County children (through age 19) and their families.
Seeing the energy and resources that Boone County was committing to its children, the National Association of Counties (NACo) put a spotlight on Boone County and included us in a small group of counties selected for a Pritzker Foundation grant. Through that opportunity we received a capacity building grant from the Missouri Children’s Trust Fund, and began the Brilliant Beginnings program to provide training and support to parents and families, from pre-natal through kindergarten, so that every child in Boone County can start out life on as level a playing field as possible. In 2020, the Children’s Services Board has expanded its reach to ensure that available funding can also impact the new needs created by COVID-19.
As a County Commissioner, I am committed not just to maintaining county services but, more importantly, to building the capacity of our citizens to lead safe, productive, and economically rewarding lives. No effort pays more dividends, in my opinion, than an ongoing investment in our children.
(1) provided mental health screenings for every school-age child, and, for children in mental health crisis, has connected those children with services;
(2) created the Family Access Center for Excellence (FACE), which allows teachers, family members and law enforcement to refer children and families to FACE rather than into the Juvenile Justice System;
(3) provided funding for programs throughout the county, including the Boys & Girls Club, the Food Bank and its Buddy Pack Program, the Bridge, and countless other projects that enhance the lives of Boone County children (through age 19) and their families.
Seeing the energy and resources that Boone County was committing to its children, the National Association of Counties (NACo) put a spotlight on Boone County and included us in a small group of counties selected for a Pritzker Foundation grant. Through that opportunity we received a capacity building grant from the Missouri Children’s Trust Fund, and began the Brilliant Beginnings program to provide training and support to parents and families, from pre-natal through kindergarten, so that every child in Boone County can start out life on as level a playing field as possible. In 2020, the Children’s Services Board has expanded its reach to ensure that available funding can also impact the new needs created by COVID-19.
As a County Commissioner, I am committed not just to maintaining county services but, more importantly, to building the capacity of our citizens to lead safe, productive, and economically rewarding lives. No effort pays more dividends, in my opinion, than an ongoing investment in our children.
Wind Power
Renewable energy is important. As populations increase across the globe, dependence on energy sources that are finite becomes a more precarious model upon which to depend. When that model also creates substantial pollutants, it just makes sense to look for other, sustainable energy sources that don’t degrade the environment. But, for Boone County, I am not convinced that one renewable energy source—wind energy—is necessarily the right fit. Two years ago, the then-Director of Resource Management made the County Commission aware that a resident and farm owner near Harrisburg was interested in exploring the viability of wind energy in Boone County by placing a pole on his property to test wind speeds. I had heard for many years that, because of the barrier created by the Missouri River and the bluffs, Boone County would not have sufficient wind to make such a project economically feasible. Click here to read more ...
West Area Plan
We must be pro-active as the area west of the Columbia city limits is developed. We have experienced development that doesn’t consider infrastructure—especially transportation and sanitary sewer—at the outset. We have the opportunity for the West Area Plan to address those infrastructure questions in advance. We also have the opportunity to consider whether development there should be more self-sustaining—with residential and commercial areas—or simply residential, feeding into the larger community.
Shorter or Limited-Term Issues:
Please check back often as I add issue statements to this page, based on your questions.
COVID-19
Life, work, education, and play have all changed with the advent of COVID-19. We have had to become expert in the pivot and the pirouette as we adjust to ever-changing circumstances. Prior to March, even with world news of a spreading virus, here in Boone County we were still thinking that large group celebrations of our County Bicentennial, of the Women’s Suffrage Centennial, and of the annual occurrences of festivals, musical presentations, and athletic events would go on as usual. Hard stop. Pivot. Rudi Keller’s article in the Columbia Tribune in early March should have given us a heads-up, as Rudi reminded us of what had happened here in Missouri and across the country during the flu pandemic. As we began to understand that prior plans had to be changed drastically, we also became painfully aware of new needs in our community––internet access; testing supplies; personal protective equipment; hospital equipment, including ventilators; and support for essential workers.
We broadened our understanding of who essential workers are. And we began to understand the long-term nature of the impacts of this pandemic. We knew about tornados, even those like Joplin, which had an extraordinarily long recovery process. But we most often think of a disaster as finite and short-term. Even floods or disasters like the derecho winds that have recently devastated portions of Iowa, Illinois and Indiana have a beginning and an end. COVID-19, by contrast, seems to be a never-ending process, with no time frame and thus no anticipation of when life will be “back to normal.”
Perhaps in part it is that aspect of the disaster that has led to divisive behavior, with blame ascribed to many, including those charged with establishing regulations designed to limit the spread of the virus. In addition to a normally demanding schedule, my workday suddenly included searching for materials to create virus test kits, finding physical space for the Columbia STEM Alliance “operation face shield”, studying the regulations and limitations associated with federal and state CARES Act funds, determining (with others) the process for and assistance needed in equitably distributing those funds, and facilitating the emergency distribution of CARES Act funds to the Health Department for additional testing and contact tracing and to all Boone County school districts for the purchase of hotspots so that students can continue to learn even if classes are forced to be held remotely. Otherwise important efforts, like finding new ways to commemorate our County’s Bicentennial in the midst of a pandemic, were relegated to “after hours”. The circumstances in which we now live have added an extra urgency to the job of County Commissioner. I know the decisions we make have a direct—and in this case, an immediate—bearing on so many lives. I do not take that responsibility lightly.
> Read Janet's statement of support for Columbia/Boone County Health Director, Stephanie Browning here.
> Read more about the importance of resilience here.
We broadened our understanding of who essential workers are. And we began to understand the long-term nature of the impacts of this pandemic. We knew about tornados, even those like Joplin, which had an extraordinarily long recovery process. But we most often think of a disaster as finite and short-term. Even floods or disasters like the derecho winds that have recently devastated portions of Iowa, Illinois and Indiana have a beginning and an end. COVID-19, by contrast, seems to be a never-ending process, with no time frame and thus no anticipation of when life will be “back to normal.”
Perhaps in part it is that aspect of the disaster that has led to divisive behavior, with blame ascribed to many, including those charged with establishing regulations designed to limit the spread of the virus. In addition to a normally demanding schedule, my workday suddenly included searching for materials to create virus test kits, finding physical space for the Columbia STEM Alliance “operation face shield”, studying the regulations and limitations associated with federal and state CARES Act funds, determining (with others) the process for and assistance needed in equitably distributing those funds, and facilitating the emergency distribution of CARES Act funds to the Health Department for additional testing and contact tracing and to all Boone County school districts for the purchase of hotspots so that students can continue to learn even if classes are forced to be held remotely. Otherwise important efforts, like finding new ways to commemorate our County’s Bicentennial in the midst of a pandemic, were relegated to “after hours”. The circumstances in which we now live have added an extra urgency to the job of County Commissioner. I know the decisions we make have a direct—and in this case, an immediate—bearing on so many lives. I do not take that responsibility lightly.
> Read Janet's statement of support for Columbia/Boone County Health Director, Stephanie Browning here.
> Read more about the importance of resilience here.
PRIORITIES AND FOCUS
While priorities must adapt or change based on current needs, I am often asked what county issues are my highest priorities. Without doubt, economic stability is a core priority in these challenging times. Boone County’s budget is built primarily on sales tax revenues. The County’s ability to provide essential services depends on that revenue stream. Because of our inability to access taxes on remote sales, our revenue streams, designed to maintain fundamental county services like Road and Bridge, Emergency Management, Law Enforcement and more, have experienced a significant decline. Even before COVID-19 hit, Boone County was facing serious economic challenges because we lack a mechanism to collect sales tax for on-line purchases and, since 2018, over 50% of all purchases have been made on-line. We must find a solution to this problem so that we can continue to provide the level of services Boone Countians expect and deserve.
BALANCING CITY AND COUNTY NEEDS
Officials who represent both urban and rural Boone County must recognize and treat all constituents equitably, whether they reside in Columbia, our smaller towns and villages, or in rural areas across the County. While concentrated populations may require more resources of some types, those in less-populated rural areas have needs that are equally compelling. It is our job as County Commissioners to assess those needs and work to find the best solutions possible for all we serve, understanding that we do not have unlimited resources.