The bulk of Tuesday’s city council meeting discussed how representation in city boards was unequal.
At the end of the meeting, Councilor Larry Breland requested an ordinance be put in place that would “ensure equitable division of nominations for board appointments based on composition of the council,” as stated on the agenda.
The discussion became somewhat heated at points, with council members speaking over one another during the discussion on how appointments should be made to boards such as the Pearl River County Utility Authority, Picayune Separate Municipal School Board and the Picayune Housing Authority.
Breland and Councilor Lynn Bogan Bumpers both pointed out that the matter was not based on race, but on how representation was not in the best interest of each district.
Breland’s point was that districts II and IV see very few people appointed to city boards. He said there have been times in the recent past that he and Bumpers have nominated people from those two districts to board vacancies, but their nominations were never voted in.
During the discussion Breland made a motion to have his proposal adopted as an ordinance, with Bumpers seconding his motion.
In the discussion phase, he used examples of appointments to the school board, housing authority, PYAA and other boards to make his point, addressing the fact that the PYAA board has members who are not city residents.
Councilor Jan Stephens said PYAA should not be an issue because the league accepts children from outside of the city limits. Mayor Ed Pinero agreed, adding that the PYAA board is comprised of business leaders who also contribute a lot to the city, even though they live in the county.
During the discussion it was mentioned that councilor Tammy Valente had very few residents from her district serving on any boards. In spite of that fact, she said the real concern should be on appointing people who are qualified.
Pinero said he could see Breland’s point on the housing authority, but felt that other appointments made within the city were done so because those individuals are the most qualified.
Whether a person is qualified or not may not be the opinion of all council members. Stephens pointed out that the nomination of another council member may not be the most qualified in her opinion.
At the end of the discussion all members of the council came to the conclusion that Breland’s proposal held weight, but needed to be discussed further before taking any action.
Breland decided to rescind his motion, which Bumpers did as well, and then made another motion to table the matter until the second meeting in March.
For additional coverage of Tuesday’s meeting, see Thursday’s edition of the Item.