Recently members of the League of Women Voters Washtenaw County Observer Corps held a roundtable discussion about their work across the county. The Observers Corps mission is to learn and report the operations, responsibilities and output of local government agencies that impact the lives of our members and the community. 

As part of the Observer Corps, League members volunteer to attend or watch a meeting and share what they observed in a written report. These reports can identify opportunities for the League to provide information to the public about critical local issues. 

The Observer corps is there to observe and report only, and does not participate in the meetings. We attend as many meetings as there are volunteers! The LWV-WC currently has 10 league members observing a variety of public bodies. These include the Board of Commissioners of Washtenaw County, Ann Arbor, Dexter, Milan, Saline and Ypsilanti City Councils, Ann Arbor and Saline School Boards and the Board of Trustees for Pittsfield Township. 

During the roundtable, the Observer Corps members shared details on how the observing process works, what they found most interesting or surprising and highlighted key topics of interest in the board or bodies they cover. Some topics included data center construction, land use and zoning issues, budgets and contract negotiations. In a lively Q&A session after their initial thoughts, observers answered questions from fellow League members. 

The LWV-WC Observer Corps hopes to expand their coverage to other public bodies across the county to better meet their mission. Learn more by emailing observer [at] lwvwashtenaw.org.