Posted on 11/08/2004 7:52:35 PM PST by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO (AP) - In stark contrast to the 2,500 pages of the California Performance Review, a commission's analysis and recommendation of the massive plan for reorganizing state government offered little help to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on which goals to pursue.
The 12-page report from the governor's 21-member commission shied away from virtually all of the controversial aspects of the plan while making only general comments about the proposal.
The California Performance Review, which the governor has hailed as a landmark analysis of state government, called for the consolidation of dozens of departments, reduction of the work force by 12,000 positions and eliminating many of the state's 118 boards and commissions.
But the commission's report, posted without notice on Friday on the CPR Web site, did not go into depth on any of the plan's recommendations and indeed mentioned only a handful of ideas.
Some commission members said the panel was unable to reach consensus on the merits of the Performance Review.
"This is not a ringing endorsement," said J.J. Jelincic, the president of the California State Employees Association, a union of public employees. "We didn't really get into the nitty gritty of the proposals; we weren't supposed to."
Ashley Snee, a spokeswoman for the governor, said the commission initially was only supposed to conduct public hearings to allow citizens to comment on the plan. But members of the commission also wanted to express their opinions and the 12-page memo to the governor represents a consensus of what a majority of the commissioners wanted to say.
Snee said the commission also analyzed hours of public testimony delivered since the plan was unveiled in August. "The commission provided a valuable service and the governor absolutely appreciates their service."
Schwarzenegger had great expectations for the reorganization plan's effect on the budget. Initially, the authors of the report said that if all 1,200 recommendations were implemented, the state could save more than $30 billion over five years. A subsequent analysis from the Legislative Analyst's office estimated the savings at less than half that amount.
Many proposals drew criticism, and reports that corporate lobbyists and attorneys shaped many of the recommendations hurt the study's credibility, some analysts said. Unions, such as the California State Employees Association, opposed ideas for privatizing government services.
The commission's final recommendations included a call for the state to improve its technology systems and reorganize some parts of the bureaucracy. Schwarzenegger has already issued an executive order calling for the consolidation of two major computer centers, a move the state's chief information officer said could cost more than $1 billion.
The panel noted that anything the governor can do without legislation to improve services and efficiency should be undertaken, but the group didn't list all the ideas the governor should consider.
The commission supported the creation of an Infrastructure Department to plan and oversee future needs for things as drinking water facilities and air quality control and they supported the concept of an Office of Management and Budget that would perform all fiscal functions.
The commission also supports the consolidation of the state's troubled prison system into one department.
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On the Net
Gov.'s home page: http://www.governor.ca.gov/state/govsite/gov-homepage.jsp
California Performance Review: http://cpr.ca.gov/
fyi
Having the feds deport illegals will help too.
Yep, typical corporate executive planning: long on feel good fuzzy wish lists and grandiose promises, short on accountability, much less understanding resource requirements or unintended consequences.
Easier said than done. The vested interests who like the status quo are more powerful than those who would like to change it.
France and Germany are terrific examples of what the consequences are once a welfare state is firmly entrenched. Kalifornia is gone - - shot down the toilet - - but most Kalifornians apparently don't know it yet. The place has to go belly up before it can truly rebuild and recover.
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