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CA: New report proposes sweeping overhaul of state government (CPR document released)
Bakersfield Californian ^ | 7/30/04 | Jim Wasserman - AP

Posted on 07/30/2004 1:13:21 PM PDT by NormsRevenge

SACRAMENTO (AP) - A plan to reorganize state government that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will release next week will propose eliminating one third of the state work force, hundreds of state boards and commissions while possibly saving $32 billion over the next five years.

Details in the 2,500-page report obtained Friday by The Associated Press also include contracting out government work to private contractors and requiring college and university students perform community service.

Months in the making, the sweeping report by the California Performance Review Board is already being called a power grab by critics and would mark the biggest reorganization of government since the 1960s. If approved by the Legislature, it would change everything from how soon children can enter kindergarten to greatly increasing the amount Californians could win in pooled lotteries with other states.

"California's spirit is alive and well, but in one vital area the state is ailing," the report states. "Once the envy of the nation, today our state government fails the people of California, and it fails the men and women who have given their careers to its service."

Officials involved in the reorganization effort declined comment Friday, and a Schwarzenegger aide also said the governor hasn't received a copy of the report yet, and didn't expect to see it until it was released on Tuesday.

Bill Leonard, a member of the Board of Equalization and a former legislator who was briefed on the report last month, said the report is "looking for less boards and commissions and a flatter organization chart, where the lines of responsibility would be clearer."

The report's reform proposals suggests a massive consolidation of state operations by combining 11 agencies and 66 departments into 11 major departments.

State finances would be controlled by a federal-style Office of Management and Budget, while a Public Safety and Homeland Security Department would oversee all law enforcement authorities who wear a badge, from fish and game investigations to the California Highway Patrol. The plan proposes creating a massive new infrastructure department to oversee water, energy, growth, housing and transportation issues in a state of 36 million people expected to reach 50 million by 2040.

Finally, it would create new super-departments to oversee the environment, commerce and consumer protection. Another would oversee health and welfare programs, now one of the state's biggest costs at $24.6 billion a year.

The report compiled in secret by 275 state employees, administration officials and consultants, has been delayed until Schwarzenegger won legislative approval for a $105 billion budget he expects to sign Saturday.

Schwarzenegger's California review resembles a National Performance Review started a decade ago by former President Clinton, who credited his panel with saving taxpayers billions of dollars by streamlining the federal bureaucracy and reinventing government operations.

In January, the governor promised to "blow up" the various boxes of state government, and he has also pitched a variety of government reform ideas, such as replacing the state's full-time Legislature with part-time lawmakers.

"The overall tone and tenor of the performance review is to put more power under the executive branch," said Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez.

The report's release Tuesday will kick off a monthslong process that includes five statewide hearings before the commission's 21 members in August and September. Afterward, the state's government watchdog, the Little Hoover Commission, will make recommendations to Schwarzenegger and the Legislature.

Next year, Schwarzenegger will propose a final version of his plan to the Legislature.

A summary of the plans to reorganize public education includes granting broader powers to the governor's secretary of education. It also recommends the secretary head a new Department of Education and Workforce Preparation and "develop, implement and disseminate coherent policy" for public education through the community college level. The more powerful education secretary would be charged with ensuring that California's education programs are effective and with evaluating the state's labor market to guarantee a supply of skilled workers.

The plan differs slightly from a proposed master plan for education that's languishing in the Legislature, which would put the Department of Education under the secretary, instead of the elected superintendent. The superintendent, under the master plan, would have more of an inspector general role, ensuring the education programs implemented by the secretary, the board and the department were effective.

Both the master plan and the performance review put secretary in charge of policy, which both say makes the governor more accountable for public schools' successes and failures.

In turn, the state would abolish its elected state superintendent of public instruction, who oversees the state Department of Education, and its 11-member governor-appointed Board of Education which sets such state education policy as academic standards.

The report also suggests changing the state constitution to abolish 58 county school superintendents and boards of education.

All of this is easy posturing, critics said Friday.

"It's very facile and easily glib to say 'Combine 'em all and save something on personnel,'" said former assemblywoman and now Board of Equalization Chair Carole Migden.

Merging the board, Franchise Tax Board and Employment Development Department ignores the fact all "have separate functions, separate areas of expertise," Migden said. "It's a diversion of attention away from the real problem, which are rampant, runaway tax giveaways."

Fellow board member Leonard, a Republican, said he was excited about the plan.

"It would be so much easier if there was just one board and one phone number" for taxpayers to call, he said.

---

On the Net: Visit the California Performance Review online at http://cpr.ca.gov/


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Extended News; Government; Politics/Elections; US: California
KEYWORDS: calgov2002; california; cprb; newreport; overhaul; proposes; stategovernment; sweeping
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1 posted on 07/30/2004 1:13:27 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
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To: NormsRevenge

Great,, but this is not the end game, by any means.

Dont't forget pension benefits reform, legislative redistricting, entitlement programs, infrastructure, etc still remain as areas that need much work as well...


2 posted on 07/30/2004 1:17:26 PM PDT by NormsRevenge (OUI OUI!!! ... Vote for Jean Kerrrrrriiii'........ I'm Jacques Chirac and I approved this tagline.)
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To: NormsRevenge

The timing of this release suggests that Arnold knew the Stalinists in the Legislature will be screaming bloody murder -- so much so that they even might have tried to hold up the budget, had they seen the contents a few days earlier, to try to force Arnold to agree not to dare to implement the report's recommendation.

Time for hitherto girly-man Arnold to start being Conan for once, and maybe this is just the catalyst he needs.


3 posted on 07/30/2004 1:18:14 PM PDT by pogo101
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To: NormsRevenge
FRom the CPR site..

email suggestions Here.

4 posted on 07/30/2004 1:19:28 PM PDT by NormsRevenge (OUI OUI!!! ... Vote for Jean Kerrrrrriiii'........ I'm Jacques Chirac and I approved this tagline.)
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To: pogo101
FRom the site..

The California Performance Review's report on reforming and revitalizing state government will be delivered to Governor Schwarzenegger as soon as the Legislature passes this year's budget act. As CPR Co-Executive Director, Chon Gutierrez, explained, "Releasing this report before this year's budget is adopted by the Legislature would be premature and only raises the potential for our recommendations to be a needless distraction from the current budget discussion." Please be assured that as soon as the budget process is completed and the report has been delivered to the Governor, it will be posted online for public review.


Altho bits or hints were leaked the last few weeks on some of the proposed package.

5 posted on 07/30/2004 1:21:40 PM PDT by NormsRevenge (OUI OUI!!! ... Vote for Jean Kerrrrrriiii'........ I'm Jacques Chirac and I approved this tagline.)
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To: NormsRevenge
Schwarzenegger's California review resembles a National Performance Review started a decade ago by former President Clinton, who credited his panel with saving taxpayers billions of dollars by streamlining the federal bureaucracy and reinventing government operations

Uhh, that was a charade. These CA changes sound real.

6 posted on 07/30/2004 1:22:29 PM PDT by SirAllen ("Republicans think every day is July 4th. Democrats think every day is April 15th." (RWR))
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To: NormsRevenge
Wow, if Arnold really takes this and sells it directly to the voter, bypassing the legislature so that it becomes a campaign issue, this might possibly really change the face of California politics.

While Californians, especially in the urban areas are diehard dem's, I don't think they have a great love for state government in an aboslute sense. I could see a campaign to push the changes as the only alternative available at the funding levels the legislature is willing and legally allowed to authorize.

7 posted on 07/30/2004 1:25:11 PM PDT by Robert357
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"Because no matter what happens there will be Democrat majorities in the Assembly and in the Senate
and even if the governor was elected God, he couldn't change that.' -- Democratic Senate President Pro Tem John Burton

Battle For Redistricting Heating Up!

The recent budget debacle has made it clear, just recalling the governor was not enough! More changes are needed to clear political gridlock in California.

Petitions are now circulating. Register now to receive your copy and help clear the way for real change in California.


StinkyMento.. A River of Manure Runs Thru It
Keyword: calgov2002 AND california - generates Bump List indexed result(s)


Let's Roll.


8 posted on 07/30/2004 1:27:44 PM PDT by NormsRevenge (OUI OUI!!! ... Vote for Jean Kerrrrrriiii'........ I'm Jacques Chirac and I approved this tagline.)
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To: NormsRevenge

Seems like Arnold is performing as promised. His first step was to stop the bleeding and buy him some time, which he has done. Now he has to chop.

I think something like this plan would be very likely to pass as an initiative with Arnold promoting it. So he has real teeth with which to fight the legislature. We may be a Democratic state, but I think even Democrats understand that our government delivers lousy results at very high tax rates.

In short, looks promising. Let's see what he does with it.

D


9 posted on 07/30/2004 1:29:07 PM PDT by daviddennis (;)
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To: Robert357

It is certainly the equivalent of a 10.5 quake.. 1/3 of the state workers? over 100 agencies, boards, commissions, poof.. for starters.. wowie doo, indeed!


10 posted on 07/30/2004 1:29:57 PM PDT by NormsRevenge (OUI OUI!!! ... Vote for Jean Kerrrrrriiii'........ I'm Jacques Chirac and I approved this tagline.)
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To: StoneColdGOP

ping


11 posted on 07/30/2004 1:33:19 PM PDT by Bella_Bru (It's for the children = It takes a village)
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To: daviddennis

Let's hope this continues and we can hang a new sign up over the Public Feeding Trough ..

New Proprietor

F. IsCal Sanity


12 posted on 07/30/2004 1:34:57 PM PDT by NormsRevenge (OUI OUI!!! ... Vote for Jean Kerrrrrriiii'........ I'm Jacques Chirac and I approved this tagline.)
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it would create new super-departments to oversee the environment, commerce and consumer protection.

More details needed on this..

13 posted on 07/30/2004 1:36:27 PM PDT by NormsRevenge (OUI OUI!!! ... Vote for Jean Kerrrrrriiii'........ I'm Jacques Chirac and I approved this tagline.)
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To: farmfriend; SierraWasp; Carry_Okie; calcowgirl; Amerigomag; kellynla; Ernest_at_the_Beach; ...

CPR ping


14 posted on 07/30/2004 1:38:48 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
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To: NormsRevenge
LA Times on Yahoo

Radical Revamp of State Bureaucracy

some snips follow..

In the most intimate of ways, the plan would influence how Californians live their lives. It would change the cutoff date for entering kindergarten; the method in which people answer questions on driver's license exams; the size of jackpots collected by lottery winners; and the procedures for officially complaining about a bad haircut.

---

Many of the thousands of proposed changes aim to make government more manageable — to logically organize a state bureaucracy that now relies on hundreds of agencies, departments, divisions, boards and commissions, many with duplicative or overlapping jurisdictions.

---

Schwarzenegger has created a 21-person commission that will hold five public hearings on the report throughout the state in August and September. The proposed government reorganization will go to the Little Hoover Commission, which will make recommendations to Schwarzenegger and the Legislature. The governor is expected to send a final version of the plan to the Legislature next year.

"In order for it to get the green light from the Legislature, it's got to be close to perfect," Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez (D-Los Angeles) said. "And if it isn't, I think it's going to run into a lot of problems."

15 posted on 07/30/2004 1:44:00 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
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To: Robert357
Wow, if Arnold really takes this and sells it directly to the voter, bypassing the legislature so that it becomes a campaign issue, this might possibly really change the face of California politics.

Agreed. Arnold has to outflank the Frisco, West L.A. and Mexican socialists in the legislature. Reforms that are good for California will be bad for that bunch of "Girlie Men" (and Dyke broads).

16 posted on 07/30/2004 1:44:05 PM PDT by elbucko (A Feral Republican)
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To: NormsRevenge

Abolishing county level boards of education in favor of more centralization at the state level would make things worse. The real problem with education is not enough local control as it is. The only way education will ever improve is to empower the schools on the local level and encouraging hands on involvement of parents. The current system lacks local control and parent involvement and actually hates it when parents do get involved. The only level they want a parent involved is through the PTSA which is basically a tool of the teacher's unions.


17 posted on 07/30/2004 1:52:04 PM PDT by antceecee (quoth Teyreza "Shove it" ...Michael Moore!)
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To: NormsRevenge
I'll need to see the details before commenting too much. In some ways, appointed boards give those affected by potential rules a venue to express their opinions to people (supposedly) having some expertise in the topic. Thus the org chart here may mean a return to more bureaucratic control without recourse except for those having the ear of the governor.

The real problem is that government monopoly in the licensing and regulation business is simply too much power.

18 posted on 07/30/2004 1:52:43 PM PDT by Carry_Okie (Privatizating government regulation is critical to national defense.)
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To: BibChr; onyx; PhiKapMom; redlipstick; habs4ever; My2Cents; South40; Hillary's Lovely Legs; ...

Check this out. (***Posse Ping***)


19 posted on 07/30/2004 1:58:59 PM PDT by My2Cents ("Fair, balanced...and unafraid.")
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To: NormsRevenge
"The overall tone and tenor of the performance review is to put more power under the executive branch," said Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez.

Fabian, you moron! That's what the executive branch does...Run state programs!

20 posted on 07/30/2004 2:07:23 PM PDT by My2Cents ("Fair, balanced...and unafraid.")
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