February 5, 2015 AD
A former County Judge says Cliff Sevier has “no vision as to the future of Rockwall County“. I suppose this odd statement gives rise to the question: What are the duties of County Commissioners?
Constitution of the State of Texas, Article 5, Section 18
Question: What are the constitutional (limited) duties of a County Commissioner?
The County Commissioners so chosen, with the County Judge as presiding officer, shall compose the County Commissioners Court, which shall exercise such powers and jurisdiction over all county business, as is conferred by this Constitution and the laws of the State, or as may be hereafter prescribed.
Answer: Administrator. It’s really a very simple job. They don’t collect taxes. They don’t try criminal cases. They don’t arrest wrongdoers. They don’t chase stray dogs. They administrate. Just to further clarify this duty of administration, here is the definition of the verb to administrate – to manage or direct (the affairs of a business, institution, etc.
Administrative duties include:
- Elections
- Buildings and property
- Roads and Bridges
- Manage the Budget
Progressives are forever pushing an agenda that advances some liberal idea of how we

ought to live our daily lives. When you hear a progressive say he or she has a vision, the progressive is actually saying he or she has an agenda. The last thing I want is a progressive politician with a “vision” for Rockwall County.
We the People of Rockwall County decide our future. We do not want and we do not need a progressive county commissioner who would squander the county treasury or override the will of the people. We’ve already had that happen to us and we want it never again.
We want our County Commissioners to ADMINISTRATE county business as prescribed by our state Constitution and our state laws.
While Cliff Sevier administered multi-million-dollar energy conservation and retrofit projects for the Siemens Corp., my company provided technical systems as a subcontractor to Siemens. I and my associates had a front-row seat where we personally observed Cliff managing highly complex, highly technical construction projects that performed as planned and were delivered on time to the satisfaction of government clients, federal and county.
John White
President
Rockwall Controls Company, Inc.