I am Bill Harkins and I am running for re-election to the Westport Board of Health (BOH). I have had the privilege of serving on the board for nearly three years, with two and a half of those years as its chairman. I am running on my record of solid management of our Health Department and the Transfer Station over that period. .

As a leader, I am not afraid to take on the difficult issues.

When I became board chair in November 2016, the Health Department was in disarray. The department was being blamed for a terrible case of animal abuse that occurred at a local tenant farm. At that time our senior agent resigned, leaving our office without a leader.

That left me - with just six months on the board - with quite a challenge. So, I rolled up my sleeves and worked diligently to rebuild the department during this tumultuous period. I had to mend a lot of fences and rebuild relationships with several state agencies such as the Department of Environmental Protection and the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources.

When the Transfer Station was in need of a new roll-off truck I fought hard to secure the funding needed to purchase a new vehicle. That funding was approved, the new roll-off truck has arrived, and it was placed into service as of February 2019.

I also worked with other members of the BOH to re-establish the position of town nurse. And perhaps most importantly, I worked with the BOS and the other BOH members to hire a new director - the first in about 20 years - to more effectively run the Health Department.

In addition to the personnel rebuild, I would also like to cite other accomplishments that have taken place during my tenure on the BOH. These include:

• Updating existing BOH regulations on piggeries and smoking, enforcing neglected regulations

on stormwater, dumpsters and port-a-jons, and passing a new Tenant Farm regulation;

• Updating the fee schedule to bring its budget closer to financial breakeven; and

• Worked with the state’s Public Health Emergency Preparedness program following the senior

agent’s departure and before the director’s hire.

Still, there is much work to be done. To better address animal issues in town, the board is requesting that the Animal Control Department be moved from the Select Board to the BOH. This would enable us to promulgate a Keeping of Animals regulation, including an Animal Site Registry, to effectively deal with animal abuse issues if and when they arise.

I have lived in Town for over 30 years. In 2017, I retired after 35 years from my technical career at Tabor Academy in Marion, during which time I established and ran the IT network on campus. I am a veteran of the US Army with overseas duty and a member of the James Morris Post of the American Legion.

It has been my honor and privilege to have served and represented you. I bring to the Board of Health the benefit of my experience gained in my first term, which I believe to be so important in making sound decisions in the future.