Picture

OK.  I got the haircut, and the picture.  It's right up there at the head of the page.

I am really glad that this election is not a beauty contest.

Yard Signs

It's time to think about yard signs, already. They should arrive at my house any day now. Some of you have already offered to 'host' a yard sign, and I thank you for your freely-offered generosity. Name recognition is, of course, a big part of the puzzle.

If you would be willing to have a 'Gary Koutnik for County Rep' sign (left) grace your lawn, first: Thanks! Second, please contact me (otsego11@gmail.com), and I'll come by and set one up. Or let me know when you see me.

I'll be by the day after Election Day to take them all down (unless you want to keep it...). If you do have one, and it disappears, let me know, and I'll replace it.

Did I say – thanks!

County Manager

If' you've read the City Manager post (or the card I distribute when going door-to-door) you'll know how I feel about a professional manager vs. amateur legislators. The term 'amateur,' by the way, means, in my lexicon, anything you do that you don't earn your living by. I'm a professional School Psychologist and school administrator; the County Reps and the Oneonta City Aldermen are all professionals as well, but, for the most part, not in the area of running a municipal government. It's a part-time job in public service, and most do an exceptionally good job: they work hard, learn what they can, and do what they think is right. If I'm elected, I hope the same can be said of me.

But we're not professional municipal managers. We're elected by the people, I believe, to guide the County through the longer-term, not to spend time on the shorter-term operational details.

A school district elects a Board of Education to lead and plan. And in every district, no matter what size, the Board hires a Superintendent, a certified professional whose job it is to operate the school district on a day to day basis. That way, everyone does what they do best.

Doesn't that make sense for the County, and the City as well?

Knocking on Doors

I've been walking around the District, going door-to-door and meeting lots of folks. My goal is to knock on every door in the District. As of today, I've gotten to everyone north of Center St.

I wasn't sure about this part of the job of running for office; I'd never done it before. But, other than the sore feet, I've been having a really good time.

You have been, without exception, warm, welcoming and interested. It's understandable for anyone to be a little careful with a stranger at their front door; but as soon as I said I was running for office, a change comes over peoples' faces; it's like you've connected with an old idea that energizes and interests you.

I'm thinking that that idea might be democracy. “Here's someone at my door, inviting me to participate in democracy. Cool!”

Anyway, I'll keep knocking. I like this idea – democracy. If I missed you somehow, let me know (otsego11@gmail.com). It's a good idea.

Post-MOSA

Our County Board heard recently from Hans Arnold of Gerhart LLC, regarding options for solid non-recyclable waste after our relationship with MOSA ends. Options were considered and, it appears, investigated with some diligence. According to the minutes of the last Board meeting,

Mr. Arnold recommended the public-private partnership as providing the lowest cost to homeowners and haulers, and an O&M [operation and maintenance] savings to the County. He stated that this option minimizes environmental liability, insures an even playing field for all haulers, stabilizes costs over time, and coordinates a county-wide program.

One would assume that the other option, turning the whole operation over to the private sector, would not provide these benefits: in other words, in private hands, household disposal costs would rise (and perhaps make it unaffordable for some), smaller haulers might be forced out of business, etc.

The partnership option is the most complex, but it could prove interesting. I work part-time at Hyde Hall, a huge old stone historic mansion within Glimmerglass State Park at the head of Otsego Lake. The Hall is owned by the State but run by a private company, Hyde Hall, Inc., and this collaboration has been effective for forty years or more. It works well, as far as I can see, with each partner doing the part that it does best.

It's important that we are able to dispose of our trash in a responsible manner, and that everyone in the County has an affordable disposal option. Mr. Arnold indicated that the private-public partnership is the way to achieve this, and it makes sense. The market has a place in this process, but so does government; not only do we need to run an efficient and competitive operation, we also need to make sure no one gets left out (including the environment). And so, when the Home Rule issue is clarified, I'd certainly like to see the Board begin to outline a plan of action, and maybe begin thinking about how this kind of partnership can operate effectively in other areas.

Updating the Charter

I attended a public forum this morning, organized by my opponent, Barbara Jass (thanks, Barbara!), where the City Charter Commission, chaired by Dave Rissberger, presented the changes recommended in the proposed charter, and led a spirited discussion of the issues, mostly regarding the addition of a City Manager.

This is, of course, not a county issue, but it will be – there is still some interest in pursuing the creation of a County Manager position – and everyone in the 11^th District is a City resident, so I thought it was important. The perfectly understandable objections to the addition of a City Manager revolve around the cost, and the addition another level of bureaucracy.

Rissberger, and four members of the commission who assisted him in the forum, made cogent points which addressed these concerns. Most cities our size have a City Manager, and one of their primary responsibilities would be to save money by reducing inefficiencies and waste. For instance, a City Manager would be responsible for making sure that all the City's various insurance policies – now, for the most part, just renewed automatically – are the best deal for the protection they provide. They would write and follow through on grants; there are a lot of examples of cities (and, in my experience, other organizations) who don't have the resources to manage grants through to the end, and end up losing them. The example of Cherry Street was presented; it was, apparently, dug up twice within a year or two, because the work – done by a variety of city departments and private corporations - wasn't coordinated well enough.

Former Mayor Dave Brenner spoke about the difficulty of being Mayor part-time, and holding together all the various parts of the city by “cajoling and negotiating.” The old charter wasn't any help with this – it made it harder – and the new charter, including the City Manager, will allow everyone to do what they do best: administrators will administrate, and elected officials will develop policy based on the needs of the people of Oneonta. Brenner warned, however, that we shouldn't expect the City Manager to save his or her whole salary in the first year, although those savings will come, and they will be substantial. Duly noted. But there's a vacant post – Municipal Facilities and Operations Manager – that may not have to be filled if a City Manager is hired. That'll go a long way to making up the added salary, which only represents about 1% of the City budget.

The proposed charter can be found here; the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions), a must-read, is here. More public forums are planned:

September 19, 7PM at the American Legion

October 10, 7PM at the United Methodist Church (organized by League of Women Voters)

October 13, 12 Noon, at the Elks Club (organized by Rotary; all welcome)

As Chairman Rissberger noted, please “read, think, ask questions and make comments.” Roger that.

A Little More Onion

(To read the first post on this topic, see below: "Hydrofracking - Starting to Peel the Onion")

Another layer of the hydrofracking onion: Do we have the authority to ban heavy industry, and hydrofracking in particular, in Otsego County or in any of our towns? Some residents of the Town of Middlefield are suing the town, which recently prohibited heavy industry; according to the Daily Star:

The lawsuit seeks to declare the provisions of the town's zoning law pertaining to oil and gas drilling void and in violation of New York State law, according to the release. The release states that the local ban violates New York's Environmental Conservation Law, which states that all local municipalities are preempted from passing local laws relating to the regulation of the oil and gas industries. Towns may not pass laws prohibiting oil and gas operations since the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation is exclusively charged with the obligation to regulate the oil and gas industries in New York, it continued.

This is probably a very good thing – it was going to happen anyway, and the sooner we get this issue cleared up, the better. There's no sense in pursing this whole issue if all our work ends up being ruled invalid. One more thing to keep track of.

I'm a little concerned about the State alone making the decisions about such a localized and impactful initiative. The Marcellus Shale underlies the Southern Tier and most of the Catskills, and covers an area that represents perhaps a third of the area of the state. This area, however, is represented by only seven or eight State senators – perhaps 12% of the total – and maybe thirty Assemblyment – about 20% of the NY Assembly. A vast majority of the legislators responsible for deciding about drilling in our county, then, have no investment in the quality of life and the complexities of our natural and tourist economy. You can't blame them, really, when the economic and energy benefits of drilling are laid out; they will appear to produce a benefit beyond our politically weak section of the state.

This is nothing new. Anyone who has done any public administration in rural upstate New York knows where the power centers are, and how decisions are made. It makes sense, really – the greatest good for the greatest number – but democracy also has a responsibility to protect the rights of the minority.

So even if State law does indicate that only New York State agencies and legislators have the authority to regulate drilling in Otsego County, I hope the argument will be made, as the suit progresses, that something valuable to everyone is at stake here, and that those of us whose lives are directly affected should at least have a place at the table.

Haircut

Almost every piece of campaign literature since the beginning of politics includes a picture of the candidate. It's just... required, I guess. Obviously, I don't yet have a picture of me on this blog. Most of you will be getting a visit from me soon, and the information card I hand out won't have a picture, either. What gives?

Well, my wife says I need a haircut before I can sit for a picture. She's right. So as soon as she cuts my hair, I'll have her take a picture, and it'll appear here. Because that's the rule: you've got to have a picture. And a haircut.

More Onion

(To read the first post on this topic, see below:  "Hydrofracking - Starting to Peel the Onion")

There are arguments for hydrofracking which really need to be carefully considered. Chief among them seem to be the economic benefit of increased industrial activity, and the assertion by many proponents of natural gas that it is cleaner-burning than the fuels it may replace, such as oil and, especially, coal.

Any new industrial initiative will create jobs and, at least initially, an economic boost. Looking further, we have to ask: are the costs worth the result? Another question of interest to many in Otsego County: how many of these jobs will go to Otsego County workers who are currently looking for work?

Studies of the economic impact of drilling in the Marcellus Shale have been done by both New York State (here's the economic assement report) and PennState University; these are just two of the countless sources of information on this topic. The Penn State study does not appear to consider the negative impacts on the local economy that the NY study does: increased truck traffic, increased fire and police protection, increased housing costs (although other studies suggest falling property values over time). There are a couple of studies that suggest that unrestricted horizontal gas drilling would have, at best, a zero or negative net economic impact (and I'll post these when I find them). The question of whether the increase in employment will have a positive impact on Otsego County unemployment is certainly an important question to ask, as we weigh the costs and benefits.

Is the methane recovered from the Marcellus Shale a cleaner-burning fuel than those it will replace, providing a more environmentally friendly approach to the energy crisis? This isn't a simple question, and we have to answer it completely before we become enmeshed in an endless web of subsidies and structural changes like we with did with, for instance, ethanol. Initially seen as a highly green (corn-based) additive to gasoline, it turns out that no one can show that it saves us anything – many experts say it takes more to produce ethanol than it saves in gasoline. But the growing of corn for ethanol is now so embedded into our agricultural and economic system that it's hard to walk it back. Meanwhile, the impact on the world grain economy is causing higher prices for basic food in the poorest of countries; certainly not an outcome that anyone advocated in the beginning.

So we have to be careful. Even the apparently self-evident truth must be examined. Here's a summary of a report by the National Center for Atmospheric Research, along with some opposing points, which suggests that replacing coal-fired power plants with plants burning natural gas would not actually reduce carbon release into the atmosphere. It's complicated. Let's learn, and talk, a lot more before we leap.

Resume

If you want to hire someone for an important job, you need, among other things, to look carefully at resumes. No difference here; you should know what you're getting before you have to decide who to vote for. So here's me:

I live on Center St. in Oneonta, right next to Oneonta Creek, which was pretty exciting in early September. Until I retired in July of '09, I was the Director of Special Education for the Oneonta City School District. I was responsible for about 70 faculty and staff, and managed a budget in the millions. I also worked closely with a surprisingly wide variety of programs and agencies, including BOCES, the State Education and Health Departments, Medicaid, ARC Otsego, Springbrook, Catholic Charities and Otsego County Probation, Social Services, SPOA, and Children with Special Needs. Before I was an administrator, I was a School Psychologist for BOCES and OCSD; I've worked in Oneonta schools for over thirty years.

Although I'm retired, I have a part-time job leading tours at Hyde Hall, a historic mansion at the north end of Otsego Lake. I'm also the School Psychologist for Andes Central School. I have a life-long interest in history, government and politics; I've had a leadership position in many organizations, including the New York Ass'n. of School Psychologists. I've written grants, presented trainings in areas as diverse as church growth and ending hunger, and I once ghost-wrote a column for the Daily Star for Rep. Sherwood Boehlert!  In my youth, I spent nine summers working at Boy Scout Camp, ending up as Ass't. Reservation Director.  I also taught a couple of Special Education courses at SUCO as an Adjunct Lecturer.

I've been married to Abbey for 32 years; she's a preschool Special Education teacher, and we have two sons, Randall and Whitsun. Randall's away at college; Whitsun is a senior at OHS, and attends the Visual Arts program at OAOC. I like to join my family in hiking, geocaching, kayaking and other outdoor activities. Indoors, I like to read and write, and I've been acting and directing in school and community theater, often with other members of the family, for almost longer than I can remember. I've also traveled extensively with my family, and I hope to keep doing all of this.

That's probably more than you wanted to know about me. Let me know if you have any questions.

Hydrofracking – Starting to Peel the Onion

Drilling for methane gas in the Marcellus Shale deposits – hydrofracking – is probably the most visible issue in Otsego County at this moment. There are yard signs all over – running about five to one against, by my unscientific count. There's a lot to think about here.

The more you peel back this onion, the more layers you find. Certainly, there are grave risks – to our water, first and foremost, and also to our roads, from the greatly increased truck traffic required to support the drilling operation. These are potential problems that you can measure and monitor, and the available evidence from current drilling locations suggests that the measurements add up to grave risk.

The damage to our way of life is less measurable but, in the long term, it could be as devastating as any other issue. It's been said before, but it's important: we are a rural community, and economically at least, we're dependent on many kinds of tourism for our livelihood. My wife and I have traveled through all the states and all but one of the Canadian provinces, and as grand and breathtaking this continent is, we've always been glad that home is in Otsego County. It's a beautiful landscape, and there are lots of ways to enjoy it. It's a priceless resource. Adding wells, trucks, buffalo tanks, and small armies of drilling company workers can only degrade what we have.

This article in the NY Times added another layer to the onion. As we are learning, hydrofracking uses water (the 'hydro' part) to break up rock; the water is recovered, and although some of it is re-used, eventually it trucked away and disposed of. According to the Times article,

...wastewater, which is sometimes hauled to sewage plants not designed to treat it and then discharged into rivers that supply drinking water, contains radioactivity at levels higher than previously known, and far higher than the level that federal regulators say is safe for these treatment plants to handle.

The whole article is worth a read.  Apparently, we could be poisoning someone else's water as well as our own.

And there are more layers still. In the interest of keeping these posts relatively brief, we can look further into this issue in a future post.

Starting a Conversation

You can't tell much about a candidate just from their party label. Party platforms and talking points don't help much when the issues are close to home and unique to your neighborhood or town or county. How is a Democrat to respond to the MOSA issue, or a Republican to the County Manager controversy? We're all just citizens, working through problems and opportunities the best we can. So it's probably important that voters have a clear idea of where everyone stands.

This blog is going to be my attempt to do that – to help you get to know me, and know how I feel about things. I suspect that this kind of thing works best as a conversation – the free exchange of ideas which is essential to democracy. So please feel free to leave a comment, and/or to send an e-mail (otsego11@gmail.com). If you know more than I do about anything I write about, I'd especially like to hear from you. If you have an opinion, I'd especially like to hear it. This thing is not about who gets elected – it's about all of us, participating in our democracy.

I'll update this blog as often as I can; I hope to work through most of the issues facing Otsego County by election day. And I hope I'll learn from we, the people.