In less than three weeks the residents of Ulster County will decide whether to fundamentally change how they are governed. The Ulster County Charter ballot question is a rare opportunity for voters to address the central, structural problems of the county government, and to put in place methods better suited to the Ulster County of 2006, a county that is growing, diverse, and vastly different from when the current system was formed 38 years ago.

If recent troubles are any indication, the structure of a part-time Chairperson and an appointed County Administrator is not serving the County well. With a property tax increase of nearly 40% last year, continuing budget shortfalls, and the disastrous jail project, the need for a different approach is clear. A full time executive with the authority of a county-wide election will bring the accountability and continuity necessary to manage a growing county, and maintain the oversight that changing committees and political appointees cannot provide.

Except for one, every county as large or larger than Ulster has an elected county executive, and studies by the Charter Commission have shown that Ulster has some of the highest costs for general government among counties of similar size in New York. Clearly Ulster is outgrowing its current government structure, and a change is desperately needed.

A new Charter is an excellent start, and we support the proposition wholeheartedly and encourage all to vote "yes" on the ballot question. But the adoption of a new Charter should be a starting point, one from where Ulster residents can take a serious look at who we elect to represent us and to not settle for the usual slate of candidates the established parties present us as a "choice."

Perhaps, if the people of Ulster County have the courage to make this change, we will have the courage to look beyond the typical party boundaries and look to other parties and other individuals to elect a government that truly represents us.

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