summitcountycouncil.org, summitcountycouncil.com, and summitcountycouncil.us

I recently purchased the above domains with the intention, if elected, to place the UNOFFICIAL public voting record of the Council members where they can be accessed easily by anyone with an Internet connection.

Right now the minutes from Summit County Council meetings containing the Council votes are housed in the SIRE system. This is the official system but that system is difficult and very laborious to use. Getting a summary of the Council's votes is, for all intents and purposes, impractical, if not impossible.

I intend to use summitcountycouncil.org, summitcountycouncil.com, and summitcountycouncil.us as a site where individuals can obtain the UNOFFICIAL public voting record of the Council as well as searchable minutes of public meetings. Currently I think most people vote for Council members based on just a snapshot of their voting record. That is, voters remember a few votes but do not know the members voting record. Either that or they just vote straight party, which is in my opinion, the wrong way to go about voting. I believe one should vote principle, person, and then party. But I digress.

Even though the site would be unofficial, I would do my utmost to place an accurate record of the Council's votes, backed up with meeting minutes, in the site. I do not intend that the above domains and functionality usurp the responsibility of the Clerk's office nor replace the SIRE system as the official record. If the County, at some point, uses a system which is more user friendly and voters are able to readily obtain the Council's voting records, then I would no longer maintain the above domains.

But until that time, if elected, I would maintain the sites as indicated. This, in addition to the tellshumway.com forum, is in fulfillment of my pledge for a more open government. The voters of Summit County deserve as much. Be informed, vote informed!