Commissioners approve county membership in National Association of Counties

The Utah County Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously to authorize the commission chair to sign an agreement with the National Association of Counties, a national membership organization the commissioners said provides research, training and a lobbying voice for counties.

Commissioner questions focused on whether the organization’s activities — including conferences and committee meetings — would proceed in 2021 given pandemic disruptions. Speaker 3 asked whether membership dues provided the same value this year and noted many conferences had been canceled, saying, “NACO is an organization… there’s lobbying on behalf of the county, but also an opportunity for us to go and meet other county officials and be educated on county issues at their annual conferences.” Speaker 2 replied that committee meetings and training continue virtually and that the association’s resources and comparisons to other counties remain useful.

A motion to approve item 6 was made by Speaker 3 and seconded by Speaker 4; the vote was taken by voice and recorded as 3–0 in favor. The commissioners indicated they expect to continue paying registration for any separate events while maintaining the membership for access to resources.

The agreement authorizes the commission chair to execute the membership contract; no fiscal total for the dues was specified on the recorded agenda discussion.