Imagine some big expenses that may not have occurred if a knowledgeable administrator had been in place. From becoming a landlord by purchasing the annex, to buying a million-dollar telephone system, to a poorly prepared annual budget the potential savings from bad decisions that don't occur is priceless. Just imagine the price of one lawsuit, such as the one being considered by Dodson International, if the county loses. Bad decisions result when decisionmakers don't have enough good information. An administrator can be that conduit for information to enable commissioners to make wise decisions.
County government is more complex than it was in the past.
Federal and state mandates on specific issues are handled by part-time county commissioners with no formal training in county government. That is a recipe for disaster. New county commissioners could readily explain to the public that the job requires at least a two-year learning curve. That learning curve could be accelerated dramatically with the aid of a professional and experienced administrator. An administrator could provide full-time attention to the daily details of running the county and leave the policymaking to county commissioners.