Highlights From Wichita Falls

Some 300 officials gathered at the West Texas regional conference were given pointed reminders of the varied and vital functions of commissioners courts who must continually balance at-home duties with involvement at the state level.
“We in local government are sometimes the least known at the state level because we are at home doing our jobs,” said Oldham County Judge Don Allred at the Opening General Session of the 77th Annual West Texas County Judges and Commissioners Association Conference.
“However, the day has passed when we can simply stay home and do our jobs,” said Allred, 2005-2006 West Texas Association president. “We have to make our concerns known at the state level.”
The conference, conducted March 21-24 in Wichita Falls, closed with two presentations that painted a clear picture of the challenge of balance. With an enlarged map as an illustration, Montague County Judge James Kittrell described his county’s recent battle with wildfires which included the evacuation of a hospital and two nursing homes.
“Declaring a local emergency is one of the most important things because that brings everything into play,” said Wichita County Judge Woody Gossom, who followed Kittrell with a discussion on support services.
Kittrell and Gossom’s session