Ottawa Impact electees choose board chair before taking office

OTTAWA COUNTY — Two months before officially taking office, Ottawa Impact electees have made their first decision. Incoming commissioners announced they plan to elect Joe Moss chairman of the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners.

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Moss, who will represent District 5, is a founder of Ottawa Impact. Moss did not respond to a request for comment on this article.

The eight soon-to-be commissioners elected in November won’t take office until the board’s first meeting in January 2023 — yet, because Ottawa Impact electees know they'll have a majority once seated, they've begun making decisions.

In the announcement — signed by incumbent Kyle Terpstra, Moss, Gretchen Cosby (District 1), Lucy Ebel (District 2), Jacob Bonnema (District 4), Rebekah Curran (District 7), Sylvia Rhodea (District 8), Roger Belknap (District 9) and Allison Miedema (District 11) — signees said Moss will be a “strong leader.”

“Joe has led the people of Ottawa County in defending against government overreach over the past year and will continue to be a strong leader of and for the people,” the statement reads. “We have confidence in Joe’s leadership abilities and wish to communicate our intention to elect him as chair of the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners in January 2023.”

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Moss released a separate statement, highlighting areas in which the group plans to take action.

“The 2023 Board of Commissioners was elected based on their bold, public commitment to protect constitutional freedoms and American values,” it reads. “I will work towards a resolution to declare Ottawa County a constitutional county.

“It is time for the people to course correct Ottawa County, remove alignment with DEI as a condition of county employment, hire freedom-loving individuals and make Ottawa County a shining light for freedom where everyone is welcome to come live, work, worship and raise a family. The hard work begins now.”

Outgoing commissioner and board chair Matt Fenske said announcing a board chair before taking office is unusual. He also said these decisions shouldn’t be predetermined outside of public meetings.

“It’s not very transparent,” he said. “(For example), when we decided to vote on using some of the ARPA funds for our employees, it wasn’t predetermined we were going to do that. It got to the board, we had a lot of open discussion. That’s where you want to have transparency and have that discussion.”

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Members will have to formally nominate and vote for Moss during the county’s organizational meeting, but it seems discussion is already done.

Fenske, in his third term, said the role of board chair typically goes to an experienced commissioner. He accepted the role in January.

“The process I’m accustomed to the last 10 years, you work yourself up into that position,” he said. “It usually isn’t quite as predetermined as what apparently has taken place.

“You reach out to some fellow commissioners to see if they would support you. It depends what you’ve done, how active you are in committees and things. Having this new group … they’ve chosen to do it in a different manner.”

The Open Meetings Act requires notice must be posted whenever a quorum — a voting majority of public boards and commissions — plans to meet and discuss policy, and that those meetings are open to the public.

All decisions by a public body are required to be made in public meetings, as are any discussions involving a quorum of board members, with some exceptions for closed sessions.

But the OMA doesn't apply to elected officials yet to take office.

The organization has a “contract” for candidates, outlining required positions on certain issues. This has forced preemptive action by the county board, including bolstering a severance agreement for the county’s DEI director, whose position is threatened by the takeover.

“They’ve had ample time to put together what their agenda will be,” Fenske said. “That’s probably going to be extremely conservative, somewhat restrictive. They may undo a lot of what’s been put in place.”

With the incoming group so tightly aligned, Fenske worries board chair won’t be the only predetermined outcome.

“My fear is that perhaps things will be already discussed,” he said. “Having nine people discussing outside of public meetings and making decisions, having an agenda already sealed and locked, that doesn’t leave much room for debate for the other two (commissioners).

“Things are going to be, probably, pretty much predetermined. That’s a little scary. Really, you should come with an open mind. This group has never done that. They’re very tight lipped and they meet pretty much outside of the public eye.”

— Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter @SentinelMitch.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Ottawa Impact electees choose board chair before taking office