County Commission | The Magazine April 2020 | Page 9

FROM THE COVER
Affiliate Groups:
Pillars of ACCA
How the ‘One Voice’ of County Government Relies on
Affiliate Groups and Affiliate Group Members
A
CCA was founded in
1929, which means county
commission members in Alabama
have been teaming up to enhance
and protect county government for
more than 90 years.
Collective and collaborative
problem-solving worked so well for
elected officials that the approach
has been extended successfully to
connecting county staffers with
similar responsibilities. More than 60
years ago, two of those staff groups
formally organized, creating what
are now known as the Association of
County Administrators of Alabama
and the Association of County
Engineers of Alabama.
Over the past 25 years, three
more affiliate groups have joined
ACCA: the Alabama Association of
Emergency Managers, the Alabama
Association of 9-1-1 Districts and
the County Revenue Officers
Association of Alabama.
“Show me a county that delivers
excellent public services, despite the
many challenges at the local level,
and I will show you two essentials,”
said ACCA Executive Director
Sonny Brasfield. “You will find
commissioners who demonstrate
leadership on a daily basis, and you
will find a dedicated and highly
effective professional staff.”
It’s much the same within
ACCA at the state level. “This
Association would not have our
track record of success and influence
without our affiliate groups,”
Brasfield said.
These professional organizations
for county staff members and their
daily impact are so important that
they are woven into the curriculum
of PLAN, the Association’s
leadership program for second-term
commissioners.
“There were definitely some
‘a-ha’ moments,” said Russell
County Commissioner Chance
Corbett, a member of PLAN 2016.
There was less surprise for him
because Corbett came into office
after years of active membership
in the Alabama Association of
Emergency Managers. “Some
commissioners didn’t really realize
how important the affiliate groups
are and how closely they work with
Sonny,” Corbett said.
Once you zoom in, it becomes
apparent that the affiliates are
fused into virtually every aspect of
ACCA — legislative advocacy and
insurance, not to mention education
programs for commissioners and
county employees. ACCA’s major
annual events — the Convention in
August and Legislative Conference
in December — always feature
educational breakout sessions
custom-tailored for the professionals
of each group.
Skeptics might wonder about
the wisdom of allocating limited
staff time to participation in these
groups, but Commissioner Joey
Peavy of Butler County says it is
a worthwhile investment of scarce
county resources, noting that
staff members learn from their
counterparts in other counties just
like elected officials do.
“As a commissioner, it’s always
great to have your support team as
involved and educated as possible,”
Peavy said. “It only helps us.” n
Association of County Commissions of Alabama’s
AFFILIATE GROUPS
Association of County Administrators of Alabama | ACAA
Association of County Engineers of Alabama | ACEA
Alabama Association of Emergency Managers | AAEM
Alabama Association of 9-1-1 Districts | AAND
County Revenue Officers Association of Alabama | CROAA
COUNTY COMMISSION | 9