Macon-Bibb mayor vetoes proposal to limit his firing powers

Macon-Bibb County Mayor Robert Reichert vetoed a resolution Wednesday that would give county commissioners the ability to overturn the mayor's firing of department heads.

Reichert's veto seeks to prevent a resolution from asking state legislators to change the local government's charter, which would allow commissioners to block department head firings.

In a letter sent to commissioners Wednesday, Reichert said changing the charter would be detrimental to the progress made by the consolidated government in its first two years.

Reichert's veto will probably be on the Jan. 5 agenda at the Macon-Bibb County Commission's meeting, where officials will have a chance to uphold or override it. The commission needs six votes to override the veto. Last week, commissioners approved the resolution 7-2.

Reichert said the charter provides for accountability and prevents "blurring the lines" on whom a department head reports to.

"If the administration is going to be held responsible for the performance of all the departments and department heads, then certainly the administration needs to be able to discipline and ultimately discharge department heads who are not doing the job the administration feels is necessary," Reichert said Wednesday afternoon.

The current charter allows the mayor to fire certain employees at will. If state legislators approve a charter change, department heads -- as well as positions such as the clerk of commission, county attorney and Municipal Court judge -- would be able to appeal their firings.

Reichert has said the charter was written specifically to have a strong mayoral form of government.

Commissioner Larry Schlesinger said the veto did not come as a surprise since Reichert announced that was his intention when the resolution passed Dec. 15.

"Members of the commission are trying to ensure that all employees of the county have access to redress when necessary, where I think the mayor is primarily focused on maintaining his power and authority," said Schlesinger, who co-sponsored the resolution with Commissioner Elaine Lucas. "There must be some place in the middle where we can meet."

This is the second time Reichert has issued a veto since consolidation began in January 2014. In May, commissioners upheld his veto that prevented the county from seeking new proposals for an investment consultant for the former Bibb County's pension plan.

In 2011, Reichert and the former Macon City Council butted heads when the council upended Reichert's decision to fire the public works director for what he said was incompetence.

In Wednesday's letter, Reichert said there is no need to change a system that's working.

"We have built a strong leadership team, and they, in turn, are working within and among the departments to maximize efficiency and performance," the letter said.

Lucas said Wednesday that department heads are "sitting ducks" under the rules of the charter. There needs to be a fair process where they have some ability to address what they believe is unfair treatment.

"Their lives are in the political hands of one person," Lucas said. "That is not a democracy and will not work in the long run."

To contact writer, Stanley Dunlap call 744-4623 or find him on Twitter@stan_telegraph.

This story was originally published December 23, 2015 at 5:49 PM with the headline "Macon-Bibb mayor vetoes proposal to limit his firing powers ."