HD22 - An Assessment of the Roles of Boards and Commissions in the Executive Branch of Virginia
Executive Summary: The Commonwealth has a strong tradition of citizen participation on boards. Collegial bodies designated as "boards," "commissions," or "councils" are associated with almost every administrative agency of the executive branch. Their responsibilities may include providing advice to agencies and the Governor, supervising major agencies, and implementing quasi-judicial or quasi-legislative functions. This review focused on 68 boards with an agency-wide purview. They were selected because their breadth of authority places them in a position to significantly influence agency operations and to exercise policy and oversight responsibilities that parallel those of the Governor's secretaries. Major concerns were the clear assignment and impLementation of operational responsibilities among governmental entities and the position of boards in the management hierarchy of State Government. JLARC Review This review was called for by House Joint Resolution 33 passed by the 1982 General Assembly and extended by House Joint Resolution 6 of the 1983 Session. The resolution directed JLARC "to study the organization of the executive branch for the purpose of determining the most efficient and effective structure." Discussion of the resolution indicated significant legislative interest in the role of boards and commissions and their relationships to other entities such as the Governor's secretaries and agency directors. The purpose of this review was to determine if boards' involvement in agency operations are consistent with statute and the management needs of the Commonwealth. Also addressed were the relationships of boards, agency directors, and the Governor's secretaries, and the unique contributions of board members. Methodology JLARC staff initially developed a comprehensive inventory of all 222 boards in the executive branch. Then 68 boards with a purview that encompasses the entire mission of an affiliated agency or institution of higher education were selected. These boards were categorized as serving primarily supervisory, policy, or advisory roles. Comparisons were then made of the statutory responsibilities and reported activities of the three categories of boards in the areas of budget, personnel, monitoring, and policy development. Written questionnaires were mailed to board chairpersons and a sample of board members requesting information on board activities and responsibilities, reporting relationships, member affiliations, and participation. Survey responses were extensively verified. For seven boards selected as case studies, board chairpersons and agency directors were interviewed and board-related materials reviewed. In addition, board expenditure data was collected from agencies associated with each of the 68 boards. Board Responsibilities for Agency Operations Generally, boards carry out their responsibilities at appropriate levels. Supervisory boards are involved in agency decisions and advisory boards limit themselves to providing advice. Nevertheless, statutes are not always specific enough to distinguish between the responsibilities of the board and agency directors in budget or personnel areas or for establishing day-to-day operational policy. Partly for this reason, some boards exceed or fall short of expected levels of activity. Clear definition appears to be needed of the responsibilities of categories of boards and agency directors. This would appropriately fix operational authority and accountability at the board or agency level and strengthen the unique contributions of citizens on boards. Operational or supervisory authority for boards should be assigned, for example, only where explicity required. In fact, some boards with such authority already function more like policy boards and do not fully serve as the operating head of the agency. Staff Recommendation 1: The General Assembly should adopt statutory language to clearly establish criteria for determining the need for a board, its level of authority, and complementary responsibilities consistent with the level of authority. Specific categories of boards should be created and each board should be assigned to one of the categories. Staff Recommendation 2: The General Assembly should repeal supervisory authority for sixteen boards and continue such authority only for the higher education boards of visitors, boards that by law appoint the administrative head of the agency, and the Board of Education. These boards are: • State Board of Elections • Commission on Local Government • State Milk Commission • Highway and Transportation Commission • Marine Resources Commission • Board of Directors, Virginia Truck and Ornamentals Research Station • State Library Board • Virginia Public Telecommunications Board • Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services • State Air Pollution Control Board • State Water Control Board • Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission • Virginia Commission for the Arts • Board of the Rehabilitative School Authority • Virginia Fire Commission • Virginia Council for the Deaf Staff Recommendation 3: The General Assembly should clarify or modify the level of authority for five additional boards. These boards are: • Board of Commerce • Commission of Heal th Regulatory Boards • Board of Housing and Community Development • Board of Military Affairs • Board of Visitors of Gunston Hall Staff Recommendation 4: The General Assembly should ensure that the Governor (or by delegation, the respective Secretary) is clearly responsible for holding agency directors or, under certain circumstances supervisory boards, accountable for the discharge of their powers and duties, except the institutions and agencies responsible for primary, secondary and higher education. Staff Recommendation 5: The General Assembly should delete the personnel employment authority of the boards that do not appoint their respective agency director. These boards are: • State Air Pollution Control Board • Virginia Commission for the Arts • State Board of Elect ions • Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission • State Library Board • Commission on Local Government • State Milk Commission • Board of the Rehabilitative School Authority • Virginia Soil and Water Conservation Commission • State Water Control Board Staff Recommendation 6: The General Assembly should specifically charge supervisory boards that have authority to appoint the agency head with the authority to approve agency budget requests. All other boards should be authorized only to review agencies' budgets. |
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