Why are these elected positions?

Add comment May 20th, 2008

It has always seemed strange to me that we elect coroners, auditors, treasurers, etc., positions that should have specific requirements and not be up to the whims of voters.

How are voters to know who can deal best with dead bodies or count money? Shouldn’t these positions have some kind of test administered and graded by the County Board or whoever is in charge?

I also don’t think they should be government jobs. I think those offices could be handled by the private sector on a contract basis. That way the county could save the increasingly expensive pension and health-care costs.

I don’t begrudge anyone a decent salary , but why should taxpayers have to pay for these folks to have cushy retirements? Most of the elected positions listed in today’s story would get paid about twice as much more in retirement than the average Winnebago County resident makes while working. And the county resident pays for that retirement with his or her tax dollars.

Does that seem fair?