Does Arlington’s governmental structure need to change?

Arlington County is widely regarded as one of the better local governments in the Greater Washington area, with residents giving their government relatively high marks. So it might surprise you to discover that there is an effort underway to change the government structure.

Currently, Arlington County is governed by a county board, consisting of five members all elected at-large. The County Manager (currently vacant) acts as the county’s chief administrative officer.

Change Arlington is an effort to change the county’s government to a ward system, where county board members are elected from specific electoral districts, with the exception of one at-large member.

The stated purpose of the proposed change from a “county manager” system to a “county board” system is to move the executive power from the county manager to the county board. Under the proposal, the county manager would remain, but would no longer be the chief administrator.

Proponents of the change are essentially making two basic arguments. First, they feel the county manager has too much power over the flow of information to the board. They point to budget cuts to public safety as a consequence. Placing the executive power in the board, they feel, would help correct this.

Second, they seem to argue that having a board comprised of at-large members dilutes the value of any individual’s vote. District-based members would certainly feel the need to protect the interest of their districts, which would presumably include protecting public safety services.

However, the information issue doesn’t seem great enough support such a major change. If board members find it difficult to obtain accurate, candid information from department heads without the interference of the County Manager, it would be far simpler to adopt policy changes to fix that particular problem.

Change Arlington also argues that the current system places the responsibility for budget development in the City Manager, who is not electorally accountable. However, the County Board must ultimately adopt the budget, and they are politically accountable. If the primary concern revolves around information flow and political accountability, it seems this problem could be solved within the existing governmental system.

The move to district or ward-based representation is even more substantial and could bring many unintended consequences. Minority parties in Arlington, including the Green Party and the Republican Party, have signed onto the effort because it may improve their chances for electing individual members. But increased minority party representation is not the stated goal of the project. And even if it were, I’m not sure that it would make the proposal more popular, given the current dominance of the Democratic Party in Arlington.

District-based elections would amplify parochial interests and potentially undermine the Board’s ability to make hard decisions that benefit the county as a whole. Arlington currently has a very well developed and strong system of neighborhood organizations who know how to make their voices heard. The new structure could both make the organizations themselves obsolete, while amplifying the significance of the anti voices in those organizations.

Neither of those consequences would be positive. Pro-change advocates argue that Arlington County is simply too large to be effectively governed by a board comprised of at-large members. But they don’t point to any particular issue that would be resolved differently or more effectively with district-based members. If it isn’t broke, what are we fixing?

The Change Arlington campaign is being spearheaded by public safety unions in reaction to budget cuts. But would this new “county board” form of government really solve the problems of lean budgets? And what would the consequences of such change be for Arlington’s status as a leader in smart growth and transit-oriented development?

Would the move to district or ward based elections result in better representation of local interest? Or would it neuter the board’s ability to move forward with innovative strategies for growth? Would it improve Arlington or would it eliminate one of Arlington’s distinctive characteristics?

Does Arlington’s government need a change? What do you think?