Dale Miller County Council Interview

1.  Please tell us your name, age, where you live, and how you make your living.

Dale Miller; Age 60; Address: The West Park area in Cleveland; Employment: Ohio State Senator

2.  Describe for us the duties of a member of the County Council.

The duties of County Council are to assist in development and implementation of a plan to create more good jobs; review, amend, and approve the budget; create an ethics policy; adopt rules regarding hiring and contracting; advise and consent on appointments by the County Executive; provide checks and balances to the power of the Executive; help constituents with inquiries regarding County government.

3.  Why do you want to serve on County Council?

I have extensive and diverse economic development experience and want to serve to help create jobs and get our economy moving forward. I particularly want to focus on developing our potential to be suppliers for the wind and solar industries and to build on our successes at the Beck Center and Gordon Square Arts District to create centers of arts and culture on the county's west side.

4.  What qualifications to you bring that make you the most qualified?

In addition to my extensive economic development experience, I have three important qualifications that my opponent cannot match. First, having served on Cleveland City Council, the Ohio House, and the Ohio Senate, I know the legislative procedures on three different legislative bodies. This would be very helpful in setting up a totally new legislative system for the county. Second, I have strong public budgeting experience, having served on the Finance Committee at Cleveland City Council and as the Ranking Democrat on the Finance Committee for three different state budgets. With Cuyahoga County facing a $19 million deficit in 2011, we need the strongest possible budgeting expertise on County Council. Third, my state experience and contacts will be helpful in getting us the best possible support and cooperation from state government.

5.  What will you do in your first weeks? Please describe in detail, to give our readers and idea of what this position will actually be like.

My focus in the first few weeks will be on putting strategies and ideas together for inclusion in the county's economic development plan; reviewing the budget for 2011 that will have been just passed by the outgoing commissioners to see if improvements can be made; starting work on ethics, contracting, and hiring policy; continuing efforts already started before taking office to review the recommendations of the transition committees; working to develop a good working relationship with the County Executive, my County Council colleagues, and other community leaders, particularly those in my district. I will also set up a system where any interested consituents can sign up to receive email reports on the progress of the new county government.

6.  How, specifically, will we know that you are doing a good job?

You will know that I've done a good job if we do what Summit County could not and get the new government working well right from the start. There will be some transitional glitches, but if we have the Executive and Council working together, are developing and implementing better job creation plans; have the budget under control, are saving money through collaboration, and are cleaning up the corruption, then we are doing well.