Should county governments be abolished in Massachusetts?

Do you know who your county commissioners are? Chances are you don't have any. In Massachusetts, there are 14 counties. But only six have county governments and if one Dedham man gets his wish, there will only be five because of a ballot question appearing in a few towns.

Question 10 is causing some confusion. WBZ got an email to our Question Everything inbox from James D. in Holbrook saying, "I went to vote yesterday and found Question 10 in our town of Holbrook on the ballot. The question was not in the red pamphlet nor did the workers at our town hall know anything about it. The question was about abolishing Norfolk County government. I have not been able to find any information on this."

We were able to track down the man who got that question on the ballot in three Norfolk County towns: Braintree, Foxboro and Holbrook. His name is Matthew Sheehan, and he thinks it's time to get rid of all county governments, especially Norfolk County where he lives.

"It's an antiquated layer of government that we don't need. Especially at a time when our cities and towns are hurting," Sheehan told WBZ-TV's David Wade.

History of Massachusetts counties

Before getting into the crux of his argument, we need to give a little bit of a history lesson.

Counties became a thing in 1643 when Massachusetts Bay split into four counties: Essex, Middlesex, Suffolk and Norfolk. Norfolk at the time actually covered the Merrimack Valley and southern New Hampshire.

By the early 1800s, there were 14 counties. But in 1997, Governor William Weld abolished the Middlesex County government. Gov. Weld described county governments as "obsolete, bureaucracies.... with department heads that serve themselves."

Shortly after, lawmakers abolished seven more county governments. Most of the duties of the county government are now overseen by the state. So today, only six remain: Norfolk, Bristol, Plymouth, Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket.

Sheehan's ballot question initiative is non-binding. If voters passed it, it would direct the local state representative to ask lawmakers to get rid of the Norfolk County government, which is led by the three county commissioners who have decades of political experience and work part time making about $50,000 each. In total, the Norfolk County government has 200 employees and a $42 million budget.

Sheehan says about the commissioners: "It's really just a taxpayer-funded retirement gig."

What does the county government do?

The county government owns and maintains several courthouses and oversees the Norfolk County Agricultural High School. It does not oversee the Norfolk County District Attorney's Office or the Sheriff's Department; that's the state. In counties where the county government was abolished, most agencies, like the Registry of Deeds, are absorbed by the state.

"If we were to drive to Natick or Newton or to Peabody, they don't have county government," Sheehan said. "So, what are those towns missing?"

WBZ asked the Norfolk County Director appointed by the commissioners: "What are you offering that these other counties who don't have a county government?" 

Director John Cronin responded, "Solutions to regional problems."

Cronin says the 28 communities in the county pay a combined $7.5 million for regional programs that he's proud to talk about.

"We operate a retired senior volunteer program, for example, that has over 200 volunteers that provide over 1,000 rides a year to veterans in Norfolk County to their doctor's appointments," Cronin said.

Here's a twist to the story. The county's biggest source of revenue is the Registry of Deeds run by Register William O'Donnell. He has had several battles with the top officials in the county.

"I filed three lawsuits against the Norfolk County commissioners, against County Director John Cronin and other county officials," O'Donnell said.

Twice the courts have ruled the county commissioners have illegally interfered with O'Donnell's office. O'Donnell says the commissioners have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a Boston law firm while he represented his office by himself.

"So, they got to do a better job if they want to stay in existence," O'Donnell said when asked about the idea of abolishing the county government which would send O'Donnell's job to the state, while Cronin's position would go away.

Cronin told WBZ, "We would like, obviously, for voters to look through the lens of reasonableness. Norfolk County employs over 200 people. We have over a $40 million budget. We are thriving."

Sheehan says his non-binding question has the power to put some pressure on a government, that he thinks is outdated.

"If we could abolish the county government and the cities and towns don't have those fees, they could keep a few hundred thousand dollars and employ some teachers, employ some police officers, fill some potholes," Sheehan said. 

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