I didn't think I'd be blogging this early in the week but I can't sit by and watch the news about the registering of Greg Curtis and Mark Walker as lobbyists without having a say.
The news of Mr. Walker becoming a lobbyist for the Legislature was covered pretty well in the Deseret News and the report concerning Greg Curtis is found in the Tribune.
Legislation that sets up ethical guidelines has been started and stopped and started and stopped over the past decade. The bills don't fail because there is no merit. They fail because the legislators themselves look around at each other and decide that they are all so principled that they don't need the guidelines.
Partly because of the scandals brought to light in the past year, there are several ethics bills being introduce again this year and most include a plank that restricts legislators from being employed as lobbyists for a year from the time they leave office. Federal law prohibits officials elected to the US Congress from lobbying for two years after they leave office. Even President Obama has decreed that members of his administration will not be allowed to lobby anytime during his term of office. Their leverage coming out of office is just too great.
Thank you, Doug Wright at KSL Radio, for highlighting the problems of the former Speaker of the House lobbying for big tobacco, just as the governor is proposing to raise tax on cigarettes. Does Mr. Curtis owe them more than he has been able to provide while in office?
The thought of Mr. Walker lobbying members of the legislature is especially troubling. He bargained a plea of guilty with the understanding that he would cooperate with prosecutors in charges against others in the legislature. How comfortable would you be, as a legislator, knowing that he only needs to say your name to the prosecuting attorney, or a news reporter, to end your career? Now there is a lobbyist with power!
Did I say "end your career"? Wait a minute, we don't have "professional polititians", right? All our legislators are laymen. That means they have regular jobs that they interrupt for public service. Legislators who find they cannot make a living in the real world after leaving office, and opt for lobbying the very folks they have been horse trading with, show the addicting power of political perks at the public trough.
Ethics reform is way over due!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Education in the Crosshairs
There is so much nail biting about budget shortfalls and necessary cuts to funding that everyone seems to be digging in to protect the items of their greatest concern. For me, public education is of very great concern. I will be sending more information about education issues in the legislative session but today I want to specifically address funding and local control.
The benefits of an educated public cross over into just about every area of public policy. Strong public education fosters a versatile and creative workforce, vigilant voters, a social conscience, better health, safety, and economic security. A decision to short change public education would bring about a decline in all these areas.
There are a mountain of education-related bills facing the legislature this year, as in previous years. This year, however, the budget constraints cast a shadow on everything. Drastic cuts have been proposed to both public education and higher education. Superintendent Randy Merrill has reported that any time the legislature talks about one percent of the education budget, it translates to half a million dollars in the Provo School District. The proposal to cut 15% would, says Dr. Merrill, leave us with a school system that you would not recognize. He states that he is trying to avoid increased class-size and maintain adequate employee salaries but calls to operate leaner over the past years have left us with very few areas to cut.
You would think that no one is naive enough to expect increased funding from the legislature at a time such as this but please watch for efforts to fund pet projects and then call it part of an existing budget. For example, last year when computer software for preschool programs was funded, it was called part of the education appropriation. Local school districts had no say as to whether they wanted or needed the preschool computer programs. The allocation was only for this particular product. This year there is a proposal that the legislature mandate implementing the Singapore Math program. There are curriculum offices in the State Office of Education and in each school district, but this legislation would override their authority and the money that comes with it would be earmarked. In essence, the districts are being asked to cut their budgets and then the funding for that budget is coming back with conditions set by the legislators. I do not advocate for or against Singapore Math. I do however feel that if local administrators are asked to cut their own budgets, we should see that they are given control of their funds to address local needs based on their assessments.
The benefits of an educated public cross over into just about every area of public policy. Strong public education fosters a versatile and creative workforce, vigilant voters, a social conscience, better health, safety, and economic security. A decision to short change public education would bring about a decline in all these areas.
There are a mountain of education-related bills facing the legislature this year, as in previous years. This year, however, the budget constraints cast a shadow on everything. Drastic cuts have been proposed to both public education and higher education. Superintendent Randy Merrill has reported that any time the legislature talks about one percent of the education budget, it translates to half a million dollars in the Provo School District. The proposal to cut 15% would, says Dr. Merrill, leave us with a school system that you would not recognize. He states that he is trying to avoid increased class-size and maintain adequate employee salaries but calls to operate leaner over the past years have left us with very few areas to cut.
You would think that no one is naive enough to expect increased funding from the legislature at a time such as this but please watch for efforts to fund pet projects and then call it part of an existing budget. For example, last year when computer software for preschool programs was funded, it was called part of the education appropriation. Local school districts had no say as to whether they wanted or needed the preschool computer programs. The allocation was only for this particular product. This year there is a proposal that the legislature mandate implementing the Singapore Math program. There are curriculum offices in the State Office of Education and in each school district, but this legislation would override their authority and the money that comes with it would be earmarked. In essence, the districts are being asked to cut their budgets and then the funding for that budget is coming back with conditions set by the legislators. I do not advocate for or against Singapore Math. I do however feel that if local administrators are asked to cut their own budgets, we should see that they are given control of their funds to address local needs based on their assessments.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Preparing for a new session: Medicaid Funding
Dear friends,
I expected this site to be dormant and perhaps removed altogether by this time but I decided to use it to post some thoughts on the current state legislature and its work.
The State Legislative session will begin next week but there are many preliminary meetings going on now to address the immediate financial problems that the state faces.
One committee is studying health care and proposals to cut expenditures to Medicaid. Details about the State's commitment to Medicaid can be found at www.healthpolicyproject.org but in a nutshell, you need to know that for every dollar that the state puts in to Medicaid, the federal government sends three more. There isn’t another investment that I know of that brings that kind of return – especially in today’s economy.
In the opposite direction, every dollar that the legislature cuts from Medicaid means four dollars of services must be dropped. And cutting the programs paid for by Medicaid will result in more expensive problems that must be addressed with payments by taxes for some other program or by higher costs to healthcare consumers for doctor and hospital bills. It just doesn’t make sense.
Many families that live and work in Provo and Orem are impacted by access to Medicaid benefits, either because they receive care or are healthcare providers.
If you believe, as I do, that Medicaid is one area that should not be cut, you should send word right away to your legislators, especially those who are right now looking at health care appropriations by the State. Senator Margaret Dayton and Representative Keith Grover, both representing people in Orem and Provo, are on the committee and they want to hear from you. Mr. Grover’s email address is keithgrover@utah.gov and phone number is: 801-319-0170. Mrs. Dayton’s is: mdayton@utahsenate.org and (801) 221-0623, Calling or email is best, since they are in meetings right now!
Please let your voices be heard on this or other issues that are important to you.
I expected this site to be dormant and perhaps removed altogether by this time but I decided to use it to post some thoughts on the current state legislature and its work.
The State Legislative session will begin next week but there are many preliminary meetings going on now to address the immediate financial problems that the state faces.
One committee is studying health care and proposals to cut expenditures to Medicaid. Details about the State's commitment to Medicaid can be found at www.healthpolicyproject.org but in a nutshell, you need to know that for every dollar that the state puts in to Medicaid, the federal government sends three more. There isn’t another investment that I know of that brings that kind of return – especially in today’s economy.
In the opposite direction, every dollar that the legislature cuts from Medicaid means four dollars of services must be dropped. And cutting the programs paid for by Medicaid will result in more expensive problems that must be addressed with payments by taxes for some other program or by higher costs to healthcare consumers for doctor and hospital bills. It just doesn’t make sense.
Many families that live and work in Provo and Orem are impacted by access to Medicaid benefits, either because they receive care or are healthcare providers.
If you believe, as I do, that Medicaid is one area that should not be cut, you should send word right away to your legislators, especially those who are right now looking at health care appropriations by the State. Senator Margaret Dayton and Representative Keith Grover, both representing people in Orem and Provo, are on the committee and they want to hear from you. Mr. Grover’s email address is keithgrover@utah.gov and phone number is: 801-319-0170. Mrs. Dayton’s is: mdayton@utahsenate.org and (801) 221-0623, Calling or email is best, since they are in meetings right now!
Please let your voices be heard on this or other issues that are important to you.
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