It makes sense to consider this week’s suggestion by Butler County Commissioner Bill McCarrier to eliminate the individual commissioners’ reports at every voting meeting.

McCarrier, the board chairman, said the report time “is being used as a forum for a re-election campaign in which one candidate hopes to elevate (his) own candidacy by degrading others.”

He was referring to numerous reports given by Commissioner Jim Eckstein that have attacked county workers and other elected officials.

“Being criticized is part of holding a political office,” McCarrier said. “However, the insinuations and accusations made in this report time have degraded into hellacious attacks.”

McCarrier raises an important point. Eckstein’s irresponsible allegations and insinuations give a bad name to the board’s controlling majority — MaCarrier and Dale Pinkerton — who are obligated to endure Eckstein’s presence but not his 10-minute rants.

In addition to that, Eckstein’s statements simply waste a lot of time.

Under the circumstance of dissension among the commissioners, it makes perfect sense for the controlling majority to take prudent steps to maintain control. McCarrier sounds willing to take that prudent step.

Elimination of the commissioners’ comments doesn’t silence them. They still can speak during the public comment period, but that would limit them to three minutes instead of the 10 they are now allotted.

Better yet, if any commissioner has a valid topic that needs discussion, he can place it on the agenda under new business, old business or “for the good of the order.”

That would require some advance planning, since the agenda meetings usually fall a couple of days before the voting meeting. But it would be a good thing for commissioners to think a day or two before speaking about any topic, declare ahead of time the topic they wish to address, and agree to focus their comments on the topic at hand — and not stray from the topic.

And if the commissioner does stray from the agenda item, the chairman has the right to gavel discussion back on point.

This makes perfect sense. Commissioners are paid very well to conduct the county’s business, not to bebate points of politics, express unfounded opinions or level blame at each other. In that regard, we share McCarrier’s mounting frustration.