LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas — Most of the time, people view the local government as just the city's mayor, city council, or directors.
However, the local government starts with the residents.
In Little Rock, commissions and board are made up of volunteers who are appointed. That group then decides on city matters.
Currently, there are several vacancies on these boards and commissions that are preventing meetings from being held and decisions from being made.
Currently, there are 17 commissions with vacancies, which is preventing meetings from being held and decisions from being made.
The Civil Service Commission is one of those affected. Civil Service Commission Chair Jeff Hildebrand has been on the commission for 12 years and said it's frustrating.
"We don't really know when we can meet or when we can't meet," Hildebrand said.
The commission listens to complaints against police and fire as well as holds hearings of appeals when there are disciplinary actions.
It was the Civil Service Commission that heard Charles Starks when he appealed his termination with the Little Rock Police Department after shooting Bradley Blackshire in February 2019.
But if commissioners needed to hold a meeting now they couldn't because of the vacancies.
"We would just postpone it," Hildebrand said. "It would be delayed until we either had enough commissioners that could attend that meeting or we fill the two vacancies."
Some of the commissions with vacancies relate to issues, like the arts, keeping the city beautiful, the historic district and racial and cultural diversity.
Each one focuses on a different part of city operations with the appointed commissioners meeting periodically.
"This is a wonderful opportunity for people to become more aware and more involved in their local government," Little Rock's Chief People Officer Stacey Witherell said.
The application deadline to join a commission is Jan. 6 but will accept applications throughout the year.