To the Editor:

I was shocked and dismayed to learn that the Berne Highway Superintendent, Randy Bashwinger, has a political job off the Hill working for the Albany County Board of Elections every morning during the time when he should be overseeing the work of the six highway employees. I understand that as an elected official he has no fixed hours and therefore this arrangement is probably not illegal, but it is certainly unethical and unfair to the taxpayers of Berne.

For most working people, those who do not have elected positions, working a second job during the hours you are assigned for your regular job would be double-dipping and would result in, at a minimum, being fired from your job and paying restitution.

The article [“Berne’s highway super also holds part-time political county job,” April 15, 2019] in The Enterprise quotes Randy as saying he works more than 40 hours a week. I find this hard to believe given that, unless he speeds, he is unlikely to arrive in Berne earlier than 12:45. I understand that most of his workers leave by 3:30, which allows only two-and-three quarters hours to work with them a day. Yes, he may have a few hours of purchasing work to do, but most of the job requires adequate daylight to perform.

Supervisor Sean Lyons is quoted as saying that Randy is getting the job done even under the current situation. That makes me think that maybe the job of highway superintendent is really a part-time job. Randy also told The Enterprise that he cannot do much of the work that his workers do as he doesn’t have the proper licenses to drive anything other than a pickup truck. Why not? That seems to be a serious limitation for a highway worker.

I also question why the board of elections would hire someone for a position which so obviously conflicted with the hours of his job in Berne. Essentially, they are burdening the taxpayers of Berne with paying for a partly no-show job.

It is time to take politics out of the situation by having this be an appointed position rather than an elected one. If it were an appointed position, at least the town board would have some oversight and the taxpayers of Berne could be assured of more accountability for their hard-earned money.

Susan Hawkes-Teeter

Berne