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Variety in the Heartland |
Bowling Green Mayor Heads KLC
07/25/10 MRC/BGDN
Bowling Green Mayor Elaine Walker has taken the reins of the Kentucky League of Cities as it tries to recover from several recent scandals.
Walker was slated to start a one-year term as president of KLC in September, but took over earlier this month when Michael Miller resigned as president of KLC and mayor of Jackson. Miller resigned to become executive director of the Kentucky River Area Development District.
A series of articles by the Lexington Herald-Leader and a subsequent report by state Auditor Crit Luallen revealed excessive and suspicious spending on things like alcohol and vacations by KLC staff. More than 370 cities pay membership dues to KLC, which is one of largest providers of insurance for cities in the state and a major lobbyist for cities’ rights.
KLC has had to deal with the fallout from the controversy for the past year. Sylvia Lovely resigned as KLC’s executive director following the first round of criticism, and William Hamilton, director of insurance services, was fired in June.
As president, Walker will become the public face for the fragile organization. She will be heavily involved in the process of selecting a new executive director, the position which runs the day-to-day operations of KLC. As president, Walker chairs the executive board, which ultimately will pick a new executive director and makes other important decisions.
A new executive director is expected to be hired by the end of the year. An upcoming meeting will include a review of the by-laws of the organization, and possibly make changes, according to Walker.
This is Walker’s third year as an elected officer in KLC. She started as second vice president, then moved up to first vice president before taking over in her current position.
Walker and KLC are faced with some serious changes and challenges as the organization tries to rebuild its reputation.
KLC will have to deal with more transparency. The General Assembly passed a law this year forcing KLC to follow the Open Records Act because it is more than 25 percent publicly funded. KLC had been following the law, but stopped fulfilling requests when the Herald-Leader’s articles started running.
At least one city is suing KLC because of the Herald-Leader’s findings. Cold Spring, in northern Kentucky, is suing to recoup money from increased insurance premiums.
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