Delegation’s meeting format disappoints

Oconee’s state lawmakers heard concerns over tax fairness and spending priorities, but those complaints were aired by the only two people who met the delegation’s requirement of last week to sign up for a place on the agenda. And the lawmakers annual public meeting with their constituents last night lasted barely a half hour, which disappointed a couple of people in the audience who said they had wished for more. “A room full of people here and they didn’t ask if someone just didn’t want to have a couple of questions from the floor,” Paulette Chassin said afterward. The Oconeean said she had come to the meeting with the purpose of questioning the lawmakers about a movement to permit restaurant and bar patrons to carry weapons at a time when violence in Oconee County is on the increase. State Representative Bill Sandifer of Seneca, having been chosen the delegation’s new chairman last night, is now in a position to make changes to the format governing the annual meeting. And he told us afterward he believes some changes would be appropriate.