DeKALB | The DeKalb County Board will decide April 20 whether it will shrink from 24 members to 18.

The reduction comes to the board from an ad hoc committee that made the recommendation. Julia Fullerton, chairperson of the ad hoc rules committee, said the reduction in board members would not only save money, but would also “localize the government.”

“Right now the board is broken up into 12 two-member districts, and if the proposal passes it will be broken up into 18 one-member districts,” Fullerton said. “This will allow for better local representation.”

If the board passes the proposal, voters will decide who will keep their positions.

“If they do decide to reduce the number, it will go into effect in the 2012 election and the voters will decide who will serve,” said DeKalb County Administrator Ray Bockman.

Bockman, however, said that he’s been fine with the status quo for a number of years.

“It has been 24 for the 31 years I’ve been working here and I believe it has worked pretty well,” Bockman said.

Paul Stoddard, DeKalb County Board member and NIU associate professor of geology, said he thinks the proposal is being considered to save money.

“The main reason I can see for such a move would be to save the county $18,000 or so in a $70 million budget,” Stoddard said. He added that it is not a good way to save money and it will decrease voter representation.

Stoddard is not the only one who dislikes the proposal.

“I am personally opposed to it,” said county board member Stephen Reid. “I believe the public shouldn’t be shortchanged for representation. The county staff is excellent but the board makes policy and shouldn’t abrogate our responsibility. After all, we decide how the county spends the budget.”

If this proposal is passed, all 24 board members would finish out their current terms.

“I have no strong feelings with regard to the current proposal to reduce from 24 to 18,” Bockman said. “The number of board members is among the smallest of the structural problems facing Illinois county governments today.”

Fullerton believes that the current county board members will vote for the good of the county.

“There is a group of good people who have the best interests of the county in mind,” Fullerton said. “No one is trying to be lifetime board members.”