I sat in a

joint meeting of Fayette County and local city officials

recently and listened to a consultant report on the

findings of a fairly extensive study of how local

governments work.

One of the

memories that stands out after listening to this

consultant is significant, not because it was a rare

occurrence - just the opposite - I've witnessed

similar reactions so frequently over the last seven years

that they can only be described as typical.

"Blown

away" were the words this particular consultant used

to describe his reaction to the quality of government and

the quality of life in Fayette County.

He was

blown away with the quality of planning he witnessed in

the Department of Fire and Emergency Services. He was

blown away with the depth and accuracy of information he

was getting from the Finance Department. He was blown

away with the sheer quality of services that Fayette

County residents receive from their government.

I've talked

to state-level bureaucrats, politicians from surrounding

counties, visiting dignitaries, all sorts of people who

come to Fayette County and gush with praise for what they

see here.

A lot of

people deserve a lot of credit for all of that, but the

man who has quietly run the day to day operations of

county government for 15 years, Billy Beckett, certainly

deserves a healthy share of that credit as well.

In fact, he

can take most of the credit, because he was the person

who hired and managed almost all of the other quality

professionals who form the county team.

Having

dealt with public officials numbering in the thousands

over my 28-year career in journalism, I can add my own

two cents worth. I can't think of a single appointed head

of government operations who has impressed me more than

Billy Beckett.

It's not

just the fact that he has always been open with the

press, though that's a plus. It's also the fact that when

you go into the county offices, you encounter people who

know their jobs, who are friendly and open with visitors

- be they reporters, members of the general public

or other government officials - and who exhibit all

the signs of good morale.

I was as

shocked as anyone when I learned Monday that the County

Commission was firing Billy Beckett.

After doing

a quick story on the straight-up facts as they were

presented, then a side-bar in which I interviewed Billy,

I thought about doing the standard "reaction"

story. I have already talked to quite a few people

knowledgeable about government doings who would like to

hang the commissioners from the nearest tree.

I don't

know if we'll end up doing such a story or not. I don't

think it would serve to enlighten anyone very much. If we

do print a reaction story, I can promise you one thing:

we'll give the commissioners a chance to respond to any

criticisms we print.

Meanwhile,

the only people who know why they fired such a popular

figure are the five members of the Board of

Commissioners, and they're not talking.

Truth is,

they don't need a reason. A county administrator is much

like a football coach or a preacher. He serves multiple

bosses and can be fired for any reason or no reason. The

fact that he has remained in favor through 15 years of

political bodies that change every two years is

remarkable in itself.

Critics are

saying the commissioners simply wanted a "yes"

man, and Billy doesn't fit that bill. There are

underlying hints that commissioners were unhappy with the

fact that Beckett works a second job as a college sports

referee. Some think he was too abrasive when acting as a

buffer between county employees and commissioners.

Perhaps the

commissioners simply felt he had been there too long and

the staff had gotten into a rut... needed shaking up a

bit. Unless they decide to spill the beans, we'll never

know.

I'm sure

critics will also wonder whether any of that was worth

the cost of losing such an obviously high quality

administrator, or even the pure monetary cost of buying

him out of his contract - well over $100,000 when

benefits are factored in.

Given a

chance to get in a few licks in this newspaper, Billy

showed the same class he has always shown and opted

instead to wish the county and its elected officials

well. Change can be a good thing, he said.

Well, I

hope this change will turn out to be a good thing for

Billy Beckett.

One thing's

for sure... he will have no shortage of job offers.