· Better Representation: Currently our 4 Town Council members represent the whole Town, but no one is responsible for representing your community. With Council Districts, you will have a Town Council member from your community representing you and your community. You will have a Council Member attending school board meetings and community events all the time, not just Election years. It means that all parts of Town will have an equal say at Town Hall.
· More Accountability: With Council Districts, you will have a Council Member who answers to you. You will know who to call with a question. That person’s job will depend on how well he or she represents your community. Under the current system, a Council Member can ignore whole sections of Town and still be re-elected.
· More Openness: So far in 2009, 100 percent of the Town Council’s 598 votes have been unanimous. The 100 percent unanimous votes do not reflect our diverse communities and interests. Town Council Districts will ensure that every community has a say at Town Hall. With Council Districts, we will have more public input, more debate and decisions that reflect all our communities.
· Takes the Big Money Out of Town Politics: Town Council members raise over $220,000 in each election cycle. That is legal and necessary, but they rely on politically connected big donors while challengers and “citizen legislators” cannot raise those funds. With Town Council Districts, community ties matter more than money. With Town Council Districts, candidates will win based on what they do for your community.
· No New Costs: No new layers, no new staff and no new costs. Four towns on Long Island have made the switch and none have raised costs because of Council Districts.
· Huntington Has Outgrown the At-Large System: When the State established the Town government structure in the 1920’s, Huntington had fewer than 30,000 residents. Today, Huntington has over 200,000 residents, more than Salt Lake City, Des Moines and Little Rock. We are a large, thriving Town full of diverse communities and interests.
It is what we do at every other level of government & in the rest of America
“Huntington is a modern, cosmopolitan town in many ways. It's time its form of government reflected that.” Newsday editorial October 20, 2009.