Evening star., 1951-12-30
Fairfax County All Sci
For Executive-Type
Government Tuesday
By Mary Lou Werner

at AllulllSIlI TOMORROW Falf1aS
County will join the ranks OF
Washington area communities
that have adopted forms of gov
ernment tailored for administra-
tive efficiency.
The county executive system
that becomes effective then is q
first cousin of manager forms oil
government in Arlington anc
Montgomery Counties and Alex.
.andrla and Falls Church.
For the first time, Fairfax will
have an administrative head re.
SponSlble for the conduct of bust.
ness in all county departments
The supervisors have announced
that the county executive job tenn
porarily will go to r. M. Lough-
borough, present executive secre-
tary.
The new executives role as ad-
mlnlstrator, instead OF clerk for
the supervisors, is one of the big
advantages pointed to by county
executive advocates in their cam
paign for adoption of that system.
Their campaign ended successfully
with referendum in the fall of
1850. Voters picked the county
over the county manager
plan which also appeared on the
ballot.
Supervisors Get New Power.
The executives Office will not be
the only one given new authority,
however.
The supervisors themselves will
have some appointive powers that
now rest with the Circuit Court.
They will appoint the School
Board. and will appoint all de-
partment heads on recommenda-
ton of the county executive. Some
of the appointments they will
make previously have been made
by court-appointed boards. or
chosen by election.
A director of finance, for in
stance. will be appointed. He will
serve in lieu of a Treasurer and
Commissioner of Revenue, two
elective Offices abolished by the
new form of government.
The welfare director. previously
appointed by the Welfare Board,
also will come under the super
visor's control. The Welfare Board
will be appointed by the super
visors, instead of by the court.
All changes, however. are in the
internal administration of the
county-and not in the services to
be offered.
The supervisors have found the
county's need for services already
has exceeded provisions of the
county executive system.
They are hoping the General
Assembly session beginning jan
uary 8 will take care of some of
the needs not provided for by the
county executive plan.
Legislation they seek includes:
permission to create a department
of public works, particularly to
cover sewer services; authority to
employ a special counsel; clari-
flcation of zoning regulations
they fear the county executive
regulations would require refer
endum for each rezoning: author
ity to appoint the Board of Lii
brary Trustees which the county
executive system would leave in
the hands of the Circuit Court.
Also apparently not provided for
in the county executive set-up is
a planning board to make recon-
mendations on rezoning requests.
Supervisors Will Meet.
The legislative requests will be
gone over by the new supervisors
at 8 pm. Thursday at a meeting
with State Senator John A. K.
Donovan and Delegate Edwin
Lynch.
Prior to this, however, meet
ing is set for 10 am. New Years
Day when a chairman will be
elected then and the temporary
appointment of Mr.. Lougborough
as executive is to be made Official
Appointment of other department
heads on his recommendation may
then proceed.
They also are expected to ap-
point the new member
school board. One member from
each district, and one at large.
A second meeting is set for 10
am. Wednesday, the regular
meeting day.
The new supervisors are Mrs
Anne Wilkins, Falls Church Dis
trict:; Stuart DeBell. Centreville,
and c. B. Jett, Lee. all newcomers
and G. Wallace Carper, Provi-
dence; Maurice Fox, Dranesville,
and Arthur I. Shaffer. Mount Ver-
non District.