The state of Missouri has over 200 boards and commissions. That is too many — way too many.So it makes sense to take a look at how that number can be reduced. Gov. Eric Greitens made it clear he was going to do just that this past week when he signed an executive order creating a task force that will evaluate the purpose and effectiveness of each board.The task force will then make recommendations on elimination, consolidation or modification of the various boards and commissions.We applaud Greitens’ efforts to streamline the number of boards. We applauded his predessessor, Jay Nixon, when he did the same thing. Nixon was successful in eliminating 13 boards via executive order and worked with the Legislature to eliminate others during his two terms in the executive branch.There is more work to be done. While it’s true that many of the boards and commissions do important work, there are others that are redundant, outdated and no longer serve their original purpose.Moreover, it can be hard to fill seats on some boards. While some positions are salaried, the majority are filled by volunteers.For a variety of reasons, it is often hard to find qualified people willing to serve. Vacancies are common and sometimes meetings are canceled because there isn’t a quorum to operate. Some board members serve on expired terms because no one is appointed to replace them. It is a common scenario in all administrations.Nixon was criticized for not making appointments to the boards while he was in office, especially in his last term. News reports indicate there were as many as 1,200 vacancies on boards and commissions when he left office.The reality is a governor could spend all of his time trying to fill positions on these boards and commissions because there are simply too many. Greitens would be doing himself and the state a favor by reducing the number.