St. Louis County could get a new style of government if put before voters for approval.
Seventh District Councilman Mark Harder, R-Ballwin, who is running for Missouri’s 15th Senate District in the upcoming election, introduced legislation that would put the question of whether or not the county should have a county manager system of government in front of voters on the Nov. 5 ballot.
The current Charter calls for a full-time county executive who appoints a staff including a chief of operations and a chief of staff who run day-to-day government operations, but the county executive is on site running the show.
Under the proposal for a county manager, the county executive post could become largely ceremonial – much like a mayoral position in a city with a city administrator – with a county manager overseeing the everyday operations of county facilities, programs and staff, as well as providing staff support to a county board when it comes to creating policies and making financial decisions, much like how a city administrator runs day-to-day operations in cities.
Harder said at the council’s July 30 meeting that a public meeting would be held “hopefully in the first part of August” to discuss his county manager proposal further.
The manager would be appointed at the discretion of the council or the county executive, and would allow elected officials “to focus on policy and vision for the county,” Harder stated in a press release.
The county Charter Commission considered the idea of a county manager back in 2019, but the commission’s vote on whether or not to place the proposal before voters was tied and did not meet the threshold to be placed on the ballot.
Among those who spoke in favor of a county manager style of government during 2019’s public Charter Commission meetings included Sunset Hills Mayor Pat Fribis and Crestwood 3rd Ward Alderman Grant Mabie, then mayor. The proposal also had supporters on the council then, including 6th District Councilman Ernie Trakas, R-Oakville, and former 3rd District Councilman Tim Fitch, R-Fenton.
“The County’s current structure often puts elected officials and their appointees in both the Executive and Legislative branches at odds with each other. This has created stalemates when it comes to the operation of county government …. New outside ideas and management are necessary to fix this,” Harder said. “I want to get this discussion started again because what we have been doing isn’t working.”
Clay County in Missouri appointed a county administrator in 2022, Dianna Wright, who is in charge of implementing the Clay County Commissioners’ policies and priorities, acting as the budget officer and managing the county’s daily operations.
In Illinois, Peoria County, and DeKalb County, which encompasses part of the Chicago metropolitan area, also operate under a county administrator system.