Monique Jackson McMillan, who is halfway through her second term as an elected member of the Cumberland County Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors, has missed seven meetings in a row since spring and could be removed from office.
She told CityView on Tuesday and Wednesday this week she wants to stay in office and resume her duties.
The supervisors on the Soil and Water board meet 10 times a year — monthly, but skipping January and July — Soil Conservationist Mitch Miller said. The supervisors oversee government programs that give landowners money and other resources to protect waterways and prevent soil erosion.
Three of its five members are elected by the general public in nonpartisan elections and serve four-year terms. Two members are appointed by the state Soil and Water Conservation Commission. McMillan was first elected in 2018 and was reelected in 2022.
Service on the board is part-time, and the office has no salary. Supervisors can be reimbursed for mileage and expenses they incur while carrying out their duties, board Chair C. Wayne Collier Jr. said last week.
At the Soil and Water Board’s Dec. 12 meeting, Collier told the board the agency had attempted to contact McMillan.
“We can’t get up with her in any way, both from her old job, and from here,” Collier said. “And so we’re going through the steps to figure out how to replace that supervisor.”
The Cumberland board has contacted the state Soil and Water Conservation Commission about the situation, Collier said.
North Carolina law says the state Soil and Water Conservation Commission can remove a supervisor “for neglect of duty, incompetence or malfeasance in office, but for no other reason.” The commission has to provide notice of the removal effort and hold a hearing, the law says.
The state commission can then fill the vacancy.
McMillan had been a regular, active participant on the county Soil and Water board before she disappeared, Collier told CityView.
“She was a good supervisor. She was very thoughtful, and she helped us with some of our employees, as things have gone on,” he said.
McMillan wants to stay in office
CityView this week found that McMillan’s telephone number for her job was not working, and calls to her last known cell phone number were met with a recording that says the phone is not accepting calls.
In an effort to find McMillan, CityView this week contacted McMillan’s employer, the North Carolina League of Conservation Voters, and Democracy North Carolina, where she has had a part-time position. CityView also sent a message to McMillan via her LinkedIn page and sent a direct message to her election campaign’s Facebook page.
She called CityView on Tuesday.
McMillan was unaware that the board had begun taking steps to replace her, she said.
A crisis in McMillan’s personal life led to her absence from the Soil and Water Board, she said. She does not want to publicly disclose the specifics, she said.
“I’ve been having a tough year,” she said. “I had a lot of personal issues that have been going on in my family this year, that caused me to have to … prioritize those things over everything else recently.
“But I do plan on continuing my work on the board if I can, and getting back to a healthy balance so that I can be present, back present at the meetings again.”
Conservation is a passion of hers, McMillan said, and she understands she has an obligation to the voters.
Board members sworn in, officers elected
In addition to discussing McMillan’s absence, the Soil and Water board held a swearing-in ceremony for newly elected member Josh Ballard and for Collier, who was re-appointed to one of the two appointed slots by the state Soil and Water Conservation Commission.
Ballard defeated incumbent Lena Simmons in the November election in a three-way race that also included candidate Kristal Watts.
“I appreciate it, thankful for the opportunity to serve my community, thankful for the county for putting their trust in me,” Ballard said after he took office.
The board voted 4-0 for Collier to be the chair, for Supervisor Kevin Riddle to be vice chair, and Supervisor Ellison L. Ellison to be secretary-treasurer.
Senior reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at 910-261-4710 and pwoolverton@cityviewnc.com.
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