At the January 28th Board of Supervisors Meeting, a citizen applauded the Board for their December vote to make Spotsylvania County a Second Amendment sanctuary. Due to the movement of gun control legislation in the General Assembly, the same resident also advocated that the County consider forming a local militia.
Later in the meeting, it was disclosed that the County Attorney provided the Board with legal correspondence centered around how Tazewell County created a local militia, which was requested by Courtland Supervisor David Ross.
I would be, as many citizens may also be, interested to hear from our elected officials on this topic. Are they individually considering supporting a local militia with County funds? Do they oppose it? These are opinions that can certainly be expressed publicly without discussing the details of protected legal correspondence.
Regardless of how we feel about this topic, the Board collectively has struggled over the years to address meeting core government services with an equalized tax rate and we should grow increasingly concerned when they drift to topics that could further reduce available funds. If this drift is permitted to continue it makes it more likely they will be distracted from fulfilling the objectives they were elected to complete.
This is far too big of a decision not to be brought into the open of the community. The Board of Supervisors can do their part to resolve this current uncertainty by being open and transparent about their individual opinion on this matter.