Under The Sheltering Sky: Charade Or Subterfuge?

Off to the east, as you enter Central Oregon, are three mountains, known to us as the Three Sisters. Let us rename them The Siblings, as they can be a metaphor for our current county government. The commissioners sit atop their pristine, snow-covered mountains, under the sheltering sky of Oregon’s public meetings law. At their feet lie the mundane decisions of government and those of us who come as supplicants or who monitor their decisions to insure the sky stays blue and the snow white.

The sky is blue, and the snow white because Oregon law, ORS 192.620, sets out as policy the following: The Oregon form of government requires an informed public aware of the deliberations and decisions of governing bodies and the information upon which such decisions were made. It is the intent of ORS 192.610 to 192.690 that decisions of governing bodies be arrived at openly.

We attribute to Thomas Jefferson the precept that "that government is best which governs least." The sentiment makes sense, but in Marion County, the sentiment means one thing, the practice, quite another. Government must work; government must not only be fair, but also have the appearance of being fair. Sam must come down from his mountaintop and parlay with Patti. But Patti cannot, if the discussion turns on a decision affecting the county, for in Marion County, two make a quorum. Sam wants his burner renewed and is willing to give something for Patti’s support. Such is the way government works, but cannot because it would cloud the sheltering sky, and taint the pristine snow.

The Commissioners have crafted a solution, which gives the appearance of keeping the sky blue and the snow white. Instead of Sam parlaying with Patti, Sam sends a surrogate. Sam’s surrogate meets with Patti’s, or Sam meets with the designated representatives of Patti and Janet. Messages get carried back and forth from one mountaintop to another.

All is right with the world; or is it? At best, this process is a charade of questionable legality; at worst it is a subterfuge that slams shut the door for open government. Nothing prevents the commissioners from reaching decisions through surrogates that are then validated in open meetings. The appearance of comity and consensus and decisions reached with predictable brevity are symptoms of subterfuge. This analysis could be wrong, but it does point out that the structure created to maintain open government can also be used to achieve precisely the opposite.

This manner of making decisions creates the appearance that Marion County’s residents are not being fairly represented. Our solution is to add two commissioners. While this might appear to be at cross-purposes with the bon mot attributed to Jefferson, two additional commissioners would allow all of them to descend from their mountaintops and meet and parlay, at least one on one. Elected by districts, every citizen could then point to someone who is their representative.

When you end this charade (subterfuge?) you have a government whose fairness is matched by an equal commitment to the appearance of fairness.

Richard van Pelt