County Commission | The Magazine January February 2018 | Page 4

President’s PERSPECTIVE I Hon. Steve McKinnon President Put on Your Game Face We are the only ones fighting for county government. 4 | COUNTY COMMISSION n a matter of days, state lawmakers will gather on Goat Hill to kick off yet another legislative session. Months of preparation are about to be put to the test, so if you haven’t already, put on your game face. This session, I’m asking every member of county government to give their all to the process. The County Team can only be successful if every team member is ready. Why, you ask. We are the only ones representing and fighting for county government. When we get tired, when we need a break, there is no second or third string for county government. It is only us. That’s why we must ALL be in it to win. If we’re not, the final result will be on us, no one else. The County Team Captains who preceded me have paved the way for us to be the No. 1 team in public policy. Now it’s up to me, to all of us, to seal the deal and push us to the No. 1 spot. So, as this year’s County Team Captain, I’m urging each member of the County Team to perform three simple tasks. 1. Learn the Playbook Study and know the 2018 County Platform and our 2018 Legislative Priorities, both of which are provided in this issue of the magazine. (Turn to pages 7 and 24.) To contribute to the team this year, you must know the issues, and these documents let you know where we stand and where we want to go. Members of the County Team put in a great deal of time and effort in crafting these principles and priorities. The least we can do is learn them so that we can communicate them to others. 2. Connect with the Key Players Interact with your state legislators. Call them. Email them. Text them. Meet with them. Connect with them on Twitter and Facebook. Participate in County Days. It’s never too late to establish a relationship – or build upon your current relationship – with your legislators. Your position in county government is important and influential, so stay in touch with your legislators; let them know where county government stands on the issues. If you don’t speak up for county government, no one else will. 3. Perform the Play Calls Do what’s asked of you when it’s asked of you. Throughout the session, you’ll receive calls to action from the ACCA staff, the ACCA leadership and your county’s ACCA Legislative Committee member via email and the ACCA67 mobile app and over the phone. Be on the lookout for these play calls, and be ready to respond. You won’t be able to stop the clock during the Legislative Session to ponder your next move. If we all perform these three simple tasks, I’m certain there’s nothing we can’t achieve. But it will take all of us. Again, we are the County Government Team. No one else is representing us, whether we like it or not. But we have the opportunity to be victorious, thanks to the decades of hard work put in by many. We simply need the commitment of every member of the County Team. Won’t you join us this session in giving your all? n