Last modified: Saturday, January 19, 2008 1:05 AM EST GOUVEIA: In NA , the buck stops ...where? There is more than one way to run a town, and no one method has been proven best in all cases. So it would be hard to say the budget process in North Attleboro is basically flawed. After all, it has worked well for a good number of years. But just because something has appeared to work over time does not mean it can't be made to work better. If everyone abided by the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" philosophy, we would all still be riding horses. In North, town bylaws require selectmen to submit a preliminary budget to the finance committee by Jan. 15. The finance committee reviews it and makes recommendations, discusses it again with selectmen, and the budget is eventually voted upon by the Representative Town Meeting. Which raises a good question: Why isn't the town administrator, the full-time paid professional, a more integral part of the budget process? The answer is: Because the format of the town government does not allow him to be. North Attleboro is one of the communities that does not employ a town manager, choosing rather to go with the less-powerful administrator's position. A town manager is usually in charge of creating and administering the town budget, and has the responsibility of making changes subject to ultimate approval by town meeting. In North Attleboro, changes are made by the selectmen and the finance committee. These dedicated, experienced part-time volunteer officials usually do not have the same level of expertise as the full-time paid professional. Is it wise to have part-time volunteers making the crucial decisions on a $76 million budget, rather than the person hired for his municipal and budgetary expertise? Shouldn't those part-time boards be providing oversight, rather than crafting the budget? It should be noted the TA does get very involved with the budget in North Attleboro. However, it is the selectmen's budget - not his. The preliminary budget will require cuts in many departments. Town Administrator Mark Fisher said the department heads will cut their own budgets, deciding between salaries and expenses. Well, that's great - but who is in charge of the department heads? Who ties the whole budget together? It makes perfect sense to go to the department head when cutting a budget. Who knows more about how cuts will affect the operation than the people in charge of making it all happen? But you have to wonder why that same logic does not extend to the position of town administrator. Why isn't the TA charged with overseeing the budget, gathering feedback from department heads, and presenting his budget to town meeting? There are several answers, the main one being you would have to change the Town Charter. There have been attempts to do that, but they have been met with much resistance - primarily from the entrenched political establishment. Elected officials, whether on the local, state or national level, generally hate giving up power. This is especially true when they must cede power to a paid, non-elected employee who will be making decisions that could ultimately get said elected officials defeated at the polls. The department heads should be suggesting the best place to make the cuts. A town manager should be then evaluating those recommendations, and deciding if and how to implement them. It is popular to say voters are better served when power is placed in the hands of the people they choose to elect them. Elected is always assumed to be better, even when logic and common sense tell us it is not. The elected officials are the ones who choose the town manager. If their judgment is so good, should there really be anything to worry about? The voters and taxpayers are best served when the town budget is created and administered by qualified professionals who are paid for their expertise and abilities. They are ill-served when the qualified professionals are reduced to glorified clerks for the part-time boards they serve. North Attleboro needs to strengthen their administrator's position. The town would be better for the change. BILL GOUVEIA is a community columnist and a former elected selectman in both town administrator and town manager types of government. He can be reached at aninsidelook@aol.com.