New Leadership, New Transparency: Beaufort County Council Charts a Fresh Course

New leadership took the reins at the January 13, 2025 meeting of the Beaufort County Council. Council Chair Alice Howard and Vice Chair Anna Maria Tabernik had the floor and made several procedural changes that are aimed at making council operations more open and efficient. These changes come after months of outcry from the public about a lack of trust and transparency from the County Council and administration.

Newly elected Chair Howard did not shy away from the prevailing public opinion about the County Council. She openly acknowledged that the County needs to regain public trust and at her first meeting in her new role, her actions spoke louder than her words. 

Multiple procedural changes were announced and implemented at the January 13 meeting that Chair Howard and Vice Chair Tabernik hope will help the public understand and keep up with what is going on:

  1. All public comments will be at the beginning of the meeting. So instead of asking the public to wait around for a specific agenda item or be confused about when they should speak, all public comments will be at the beginning of the meeting. 
  2. For each agenda item and vote, the Director or Assistant County Administrator for the appropriate department will give a brief synopsis of the purpose of the project/vote. Vice Chair Tabernik said this would be the practice moving forward so that the public is clear about the purpose of the vote.
  3. Executive Sessions will be held prior to the full County Council meeting. Chair Howard said that starting with the next meeting, the Council will be meeting for Executive Session at 5:00pm and the full Council meeting will start at 6pm. Howard said that this type of schedule is a best practice and prevents members of the public from having to wait for Executive Sessions in the middle of meetings.

Chair Howard was clearly in control of the meeting and was confident about her statements and changes. Both she and Tabernik mentioned the need to keep the public informed throughout. The momentum of the new leadership suggests that more changes are to be expected and welcomed if they continue to be in favor of transparency and public trust. This fresh new attitude toward public engagement is commendable and much needed.

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