Meet the Commissioners

  UNION COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  

Commissioner Steve Robinson, Commissioner Dave Burke, Commissioner Dave Lawrence

commissioners@unioncountyohio.gov

Commissioner Steve Robinson

President

strobinson@unioncountyohio.gov

Commissioner Steve Robinson was raised on a dairy farm in Union County, Ohio and started a family farm of his own after graduating high school at North Union. He has continued to farm throughout his adult life and currently manages approximately 900 acres of row-crops. He uses conservation techniques with the awareness of how critical it is to maintain these practices. He also owns and maintains a family excavation company he started in 1978 and now includes 3 employees. Much of his excavating business is for producers who wish to employ conservation practices on their land. 

Steve has served at local, state, and national levels in various conservation leadership capacities. He began his lifetime dedication to volunteerism as a board member on the Union County Soil and Water District and went on to hold all state offices, all national offices, and eventually served as National President of Soil and Water Conservation Districts. He has always felt a duty to serve and to give back to the people and the land that have given so much to him, his family, and his professional life. 

His background as well as the opportunities that he has had to serve on all levels of district management have given him the insight and skills to be an effective leader and active contributor to local government in Union County. No stranger to hard work, making the tough decisions, and being a consistent leader, Steve believes strongly in local grassroots decision-making. He understands that the role of the local government is crucial when considering state and national policy decisions.

Steve and his wife Ann recently celebrated 47 years of marriage. Together they have 3 children, Josiah (Amy), Matthew (Jennifer), and Rebecca (Jeremy Miller). They are blessed with 11 grandchildren. Josiah and Rebecca and their families live in the local area and attend North Union and St. John’s schools and Matthew and Jennifer live in Northern Kentucky with their 3 children. +

•  2024 President of the Board of Commissioners

•  American Farmland Trust Advisory Committee

•  Central Ohio Youth Center (COYC) Board of Trustees 

•  County Risk Sharing Authority Board (CORSA)

•  Logan-Union-Champaign Regional Planning Commission (LUC) 

  • Budget Committee

  • Zoning and Subdivision Committee 

•  Memorial Health Board Liaison

•  North Central Ohio Solid Waste District (NCOSWD) Board of Trustees

•  Union County Investment Advisory Board

•  Union County Soil and Water Conservation District Board Liaison

•  2019 American Farmland Trust Project Advisory Committee Upper Scioto River Watershed

•  2003 Recipient of the ODNR Cardinal Award for Conservation Achievement

•  2001 NACD Strategic Plan Writing Team

•  2001 NACD Core 4 Implementation Team

•  2001 NACD Pay to Play Task Force

•  2001 NACD Farm Bill Implementation Team

•  2014 – 2021              Church Trustee – Marysville First United Methodist Church

•  2014 – 2021              National Conservation Foundation Chair

•  2004 – 2008              Chair, NACD North Central Region

•  2001 – 2010              Board Member, NACD Board of Directors

•  2001 – 2003              Past President, OFSWCD

•  2001 – 2003              Chair, NACD District Operations Committee

•  1996 – 2000              Member, NACD District Operations Committee

•  1985 – Present          Member, Ohio Farm Bureau

•  2011 – 2013               National Association of Conservation Districts Past President

•  2009 – 2011               22^nd National Association of Conservation Districts President

•  1999 – 2001               President, OFSWCD

•  1997 – 2001               NACD Board of Directors

•  1988 – 2020               Supervisor, Union SWCD

•  1985 – 1988               Associate Supervisor, Union SWCD

  Commissioner Dave Lawrence

Vice President

dlawrence@unioncountyohio.gov

Commissioner Dave Lawrence has been a resident of Union County for over 30 years.  Dave and his wife Judy have been married for 32 years with two grown children and five grandchildren. Dave was a Columbus police officer for 35 years.  During this time, he worked Patrol, SWAT, and Narcotics.  Dave served in SWAT for 14 years, 12 years as a sniper.  He was a competitive shooter and traveled the United States and the world competing.  While in Narcotics, Dave helped start the Bulk Cash Smuggling Unit which interdicted drugs and money from foreign countries.  This unit quickly became the most successful unit in the United States.

Dave has a B.A. in Political Science from Capital University.  He pursued his M.A. in Homeland Security with a concentration in crisis management, and also pursued a Ph.D. in public policy with a concentration in Homeland Security policy and administration.  Dave is currently in the dissertation phase of a doctorate in Biblical Studies.

Dave considers it an honor to serve the citizens of Union County.

• 2024 Vice President of the Board of Commissioners

• Council for Union County Families (CUCF) Board of Trustees

  • Executive Committee

•  Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC)

•  North Central Ohio Solid Waste District (NCOSWD) Board of Trustees

  • Policy Committee

•  NW33 Corridor Group

•  Union County Airport Authority Liaison

•  Union County Chamber of Commerce

•  Union County Community Improvement Corporation

•  Union County Health Department Board Liaison

•  Union County Joint Recreation District Board Liaison

•  Union County Land Reutilization Corporation Board

•  Union County Records Commission

 Commissioner Dave Burke

dburke@unioncountyohio.gov

Commissioner Dave Burke proudly represents the families and communities in Union County. Looking to help improve his community, Commissioner Burke was elected to Marysville City Council in 2002 and became Vice-President of the Council in 2005. In 2008, he was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives and was re-elected again in 2010. While in the House, Burke pushed for legislation – now law – that addresses the growing problem of prescription drug abuse in Ohio and helps keep synthetic drugs out of the hands of young Ohioans.
 
  Appointed in 2011 and twice elected (2012 and 2016) as a member of the Ohio Senate, Burke put his extensive knowledge and expertise of the healthcare industry to work as Chairman of the Medicaid Committee. He also served as a member of the Agriculture Committee, Finance Committee, Government Oversight and Reform Committee, Financial Institutions Committee, and Rules and Reference Committee.
 
  Born in Cincinnati, he was adopted by his loving parents in Marion when he was 3 months old. As a child, he attended St. Mary’s elementary and later graduated from Marion Catholic High School. He then went on to graduate from Ohio Northern University with a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy and later obtained an MBA from Capital University. Commissioner Burke has been married to his wife Donna for 30 years and has two wonderful children, Alexandra and Adam.

•  President of the Board of Revision

•  Central Ohio Youth Center (COYC) Board of Trustees 

•  Family Treatment Court Advisory Committee

•  Juvenile Treatment Court Advisory Committee

•  Mental Health and Recovery Board

•  Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC)

•  Midwest US-Japan Association

•  North Central Ohio Solid Waste District (NCOSWD) Board of Trustees

•  Tri-County Regional Jail Board of Directors

•  Union County Council of Governments (UCCOG)

•  Union County Data Processing Board

•  Union County Developmental Disabilities Board Liaison

•  Union County Investment Advisory Board

•  Union County Land Reutilization Corporation Board

•   Yorii Friendship Committee