Down The Sewer Pipe – Politically Speaking

Once you have ben elected to a public office, forces beyond your control will begin to pressure you into writing legislation. Legislation remains the ground work for the rules created by various governmental agency’s. Government agency’s will do what ever the legislation allows them to do. If you don’t want one of the agency’s, that are responsible to your elected office, to do a thing then create (or modify) the legislation that that agency draws it’s power from.

It is always a good idea to read over the legislation, that has been created in the past by the government that you are now apart of. In some cases you may find several ordinances that cover the same general idea, for instance derelict automobiles. The thing to do would be to create a single ordinance that covers the aspects of the other ordinances (which may be filed under different headings). In other instances there my be ordinances that are out dated, because the reason for the ordinance no longer exists. In this case just remove the ordinance (staff will push back because the big book of ordinances will have to be re-indexed).

Knowing your local ordinances will also keep you, and a newly elected legislator, from making an ordinance that does what another ordinance already does. Nothing quite as disquieting as new legislation that does what five other ordinances already do.

The other thing that needs to be looked at is ordinance enforcement. If the jurisdiction you have been elected to is not enforcing ordinances, get rid of the ordinances. Be aware that both state and Federal governing bodies will force your community to adopt legislation that you do not want, and does not benefit anyone in your locale.