Jackson County Conflict: Legislator Abarca Claims Exec Frank White 'Not Present' & Staff Runs His Office

This report from KC Hispanic News isn't meeting with enough social media attention but it's a rare "cowtown call out" that offers on the record rebuke. 

Moreover . . . 

CHECK LEGISLATOR MANNY ABARCA OFFERING SCATHING DEETS ABOUT EXEC FRANK WHITE'S ABSENTEE ADMINISTRATION!!!

It's an open secret that in this last term in office the Exec would rather play golf than deal with courthouse biz but this quote makes it plain . . . Check-it . . .

Normally, Abarca said, the Legislature receives a proposed budget from the County Executive’s office on Jan. 1 however, legislators didn’t have the proposal in their hands until Jan. 20. This meant Abarca and his fellow Legislators had mere days to review the budget before they were mandated by the County Charter to approve it at the end of the month.

And where is White with the answers to legislators’ questions in the meantime? That answer, Abarca said, is hard to pin down.

“We still have pending contracts we owe, and we have no idea how much cash we have in the bank going into next year,” Abarca told KC Hispanic News. “It has been a cat and mouse game trying to get answers in the time we need.”

As it stands, Abarca said, White’s presence at meetings has been low – and he has been non-communicative when pressed for a face-to-face discussion.

Abarca went further with his assessment, saying he rarely sees White in the office at all.

“He is not present. His staff are running the county,” Abarca said. “That’s a problem.”

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Jackson County Legislators Want Transparency, Communication From County Executive

The new Jackson County Legislature has only been seated for a month and a half, and some legislators say they're already facing problems with County Executive Frank White. Most of the conflict began around the most recent annual budget, passed Jan. 30, only four weeks after the newest batch of legislators were sworn in.