There is a move afoot to privatize operations that are currently performed by government agencies. After all, the competitive market and capitalist ideals have built the American economy and powered business initiative and productivity. Government workers have a reputation for inefficiency and lethargy, knowing that they will draw a paycheck no matter how they perform on the job.
While I can see the need for many functions of government to be provided by private industry, there is a balance to be achieved.
Services that are seasonal or intermittently needed are good candidates for out-sourcing. Imagine if the local public school district had to use government employee architects and carpenters to build a school. In addition, options would be limited, if elections were held using only the sort of balloting machine that some government agency had produced that year.
Some things should not be left to the private sector. The livability of a community relies on free access to certain amenities. Property owners would not be motivated to provide libraries, parks and playgrounds that are open to the public. Similarly, maintenance of public spaces, for example, parks or the grounds of public buildings or custodial care of buildings, might be privatized but work of this sort tends to be full-time employment, and it makes sense to employ maintenance workers that provide continuity of the care.
There is a danger in privatizing too much. When elected officials must award contracts to private companies, conflict of interest questions mushroom and campaign contributions from businesses vying for contracts would surely be seen as “kickbacks”. Before I would entertain proposals of widespread privatization of government services, I would demand ethics reform of the state legislature, especially in regards to conflict of interest and campaign finance.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Financing the Work
Was I surprised, when I first began to consider this project of running for office, how much the campaign itself would cost? Yes, indeed!
So the first thing you do is say, "How does everyone else raise that sort of cash?"
I knew that Mitt Romney had the resources to pay for his campaign -- or a lot of it. That isn't my situation.
Calling upon businesses or political action committees to contribute seemed the last thing I wanted to do, since that would send the message that I would be able to return the favor when their interests came up in legislation.
The ones whom I want to represent are the people of my legislative district, my neighbors. It takes confidence to approach a neighbor, especially one who you know is struggling to makes ends meet, and say, "It is so important to you that I be elected that you should help to pay for signs and pamphlets." As hard as this is, it is equally amazing when people respond and pull out a checkbook.
Many people don't get it. They haven't been asked to support a political candidate. It has hasn't been necessary in Republican dominated Utah County. There are enough willing businesses and PAC's to get the job done for republican candidates.
But others recognize the relationship of money and representation.
When it is difficult to get out of my comfort zone, memory of the $25 check that came as a surprise gets me on my feet.
This campaign may be a long shot but these $50, $20, and $5 contributions are feeding my resolve.
So the first thing you do is say, "How does everyone else raise that sort of cash?"
I knew that Mitt Romney had the resources to pay for his campaign -- or a lot of it. That isn't my situation.
Calling upon businesses or political action committees to contribute seemed the last thing I wanted to do, since that would send the message that I would be able to return the favor when their interests came up in legislation.
The ones whom I want to represent are the people of my legislative district, my neighbors. It takes confidence to approach a neighbor, especially one who you know is struggling to makes ends meet, and say, "It is so important to you that I be elected that you should help to pay for signs and pamphlets." As hard as this is, it is equally amazing when people respond and pull out a checkbook.
Many people don't get it. They haven't been asked to support a political candidate. It has hasn't been necessary in Republican dominated Utah County. There are enough willing businesses and PAC's to get the job done for republican candidates.
But others recognize the relationship of money and representation.
When it is difficult to get out of my comfort zone, memory of the $25 check that came as a surprise gets me on my feet.
This campaign may be a long shot but these $50, $20, and $5 contributions are feeding my resolve.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Looking behind the legislation
Now that the dust from this year's legislative session is settling, we are left to inspect the results.
1. The tax on the most expensive snuff tobacco is lowered and tax rates are now set by legislation per ounce. So no matter how the price changes on the stuff, the taxes will be static. It will take an act of the legislature to up-date it. This doesn't make sense to me.
2. The amount of time that citizens have to collect signatures for a referendum on legislation has been shortened by about six weeks, by act of this year's legislature. We witnessed the herculean task to place the voucher issue before the voters last year. Regardless of my opinion on education vouchers, I really like the rights of citizens to petition government. I am still trying to figure out why this bill was a good idea.
3. I am also a big fan of citizen's access to the courts. This year, the legislature passed a law that took away the right of most home owners to sue the builders of their homes for slipshod workmanship. I spoke with a frustrated subcontractor who lamented that this would affect the reputation of all the trades in the building industry. The ones who suffer the most from this legislation are the homeowners stuck in a ramshackle house. The ones who benefit are the developers who sweep in, sweep out, and sweep up.
Tied to each of these pieces of legislation, are lobbyists who are making generous donations to the campaigns of many of our legislators. It is not difficult to see who is being represented.
1. The tax on the most expensive snuff tobacco is lowered and tax rates are now set by legislation per ounce. So no matter how the price changes on the stuff, the taxes will be static. It will take an act of the legislature to up-date it. This doesn't make sense to me.
2. The amount of time that citizens have to collect signatures for a referendum on legislation has been shortened by about six weeks, by act of this year's legislature. We witnessed the herculean task to place the voucher issue before the voters last year. Regardless of my opinion on education vouchers, I really like the rights of citizens to petition government. I am still trying to figure out why this bill was a good idea.
3. I am also a big fan of citizen's access to the courts. This year, the legislature passed a law that took away the right of most home owners to sue the builders of their homes for slipshod workmanship. I spoke with a frustrated subcontractor who lamented that this would affect the reputation of all the trades in the building industry. The ones who suffer the most from this legislation are the homeowners stuck in a ramshackle house. The ones who benefit are the developers who sweep in, sweep out, and sweep up.
Tied to each of these pieces of legislation, are lobbyists who are making generous donations to the campaigns of many of our legislators. It is not difficult to see who is being represented.
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