Posted on 08/13/2004 9:42:15 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
RIVERSIDE, Calif. - Frustrated at tangled bureaucracy and worried that important services would be slashed, hundreds of Californians on Friday crowded the first public hearing on a proposal to overhaul state government.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called for "many reforms" in an energetic but brief appearance before a panel he appointed to begin the laborious task of trudging through 1,000-plus recommendations in the California Performance Review report.
The reform proposal includes large and small ideas for revamping the state's bureaucracy.
Schwarzenegger didn't offer his opinion on details of the 2,500-page report but repeated his assertion that major change is needed.
"We cannot just chip away at the edges of our state's problems. Sometimes a surgeon has to cut to save the patient," he said as the panel convened at the lecture hall of the University of California, Riverside.
Speakers at the hearing included Sacramento lobbyists, an architecture professor, building contractors and local residents, who complained about social service agencies.
The commission divided the hearing into two parts. In the first part, panelists took testimony from 16 invited speakers, including the executive vice president of the state's largest road contractor and the superintendent of the Clovis School District.
In the public comment period that followed, Marvin Schachter, 81, defended the California Commission on Aging, which the report proposes to eliminate.
"Remember the elderly," he said.
Teddie Joy-Remhild of Sherman Oaks called for more accessible public transportation and more collaboration between local agencies.
Norm Niever of Imperial County said the state has wasted money on studies of the Salton Sea that duplicated a local agency's efforts.
Crafted by 275 state employees and consultants, the reorganization plan aims to save as much as $32 billion over the next five years by consolidating departments, cutting growth in state employment by 12,000 positions and privatizing some state work.
Its proposals would allow Californians to renew vehicle registrations online and force higher fees on out-of-state college and university students. The plan also would abolish 118 boards and commissions, some of whom have members who are paid more than $100,000 a year.
The plan also would consolidate boards regulating water, energy and transportation into a single nine-member infrastructure authority.
"There's no question that we have too many agencies involved in energy," said Jan Smutny-Jones, executive director of the association Independent Energy Producers.
However, some panelists and speakers wondered whether the streamlining process was worth the reduced public oversight that would follow.
"Democracy isn't always pretty and isn't always efficient," said Richard Katz, a consultant and member of the state Water Resources Control Board. "It's important, while we strive for efficiency, we maintain the public participation."
The plan would merge 20 different entities dealing with education into one Department of Education and Workforce Preparation, while eliminating 58 county school superintendents and offices of education.
"Obviously we've really touched something at the core. People want to comment on their government," said Joanne Kozberg, commission co-chair.
Co-chair Bill Houck said several more public hearings will be held in addition to the four already scheduled. The next meeting was scheduled for Aug. 20 at the University of California, San Diego.
The commission will summarize the key issues that arise from the hearings in a report to the governor.
The governor may enact some proposals by executive order, package others into legislation, or take them before voters in the form of ballot initiatives. He has not indicated his plans.
ON THE NET
California Performance Review: http://www.cpr.ca.gov
"We cannot just chip away at the edges of our state's problems. Sometimes a surgeon has to cut to save the patient," he said as the panel convened at the lecture hall of the University of California, Riverside.
Cuts cuts cuts...
Too bad he didn't feeel that way about the budget that he actually grew instead of reducing.
The plan would merge 20 different entities dealing with education into one Department of Education and Workforce Preparation, while eliminating 58 county school superintendents and offices of education.
Ha ha ha ha. Eliminate 58 school superintendents? Not a chance. No difference between a college professor with tenure and a school superintendent. There is a better chance of Arnie running for President then there is getting rid of even one school superintendent.
Also, I'll bet that of those 275 people working on this study who are state employees not one of them would see their job abolished because of cuts.
All fine and good, but you are talking a year at least before these things would be put in front of the voters, in the meantime...
That sound you hear is status quo bubbling away in the manure pond called Stinkymento... and sustained levels of spending due to mandates and a reluctance to break unions holds on budgets.
How, *specifically*, can the Governor do this. He's facing a legislature of around 60% union-paid off and needs 2/3's the legislature to pass a budget to begin with? He's called them girlymen, he's asked for the people's help to turn out unresponsive legislators and identified this as a problem in getting a really good budget passed. I'm afraid it *WILL* take the Governor, in concert with the voters, to break their bought & paid-for backs to restore needed discipline. We didn't get into this mess overnight and it'll not be fixed overnight either.
I have made plans to attend the San Diego event at UCSD next Friday.
We may have that opportunity if the Gub truly does wage war on those Rats that occupy the majority of the seats in the legislature.
Besides raising dough by the buckets full and targeting a few seats, target them all.. why should some "safe" district office holders get a pass?
Educating the public as a whole is necessary as to how these unions along with their candidates have pushed this state into the red zone so quickly.
I know he has his plate full and it is a general election year etc, but..
He sure hasn't been lagging in finding time ot raising and accumulating a sizeable warchest.
Let's empty that warchest. He wont be around after 2006 anyway, more than likely. What would he do with all hissurplus funds if he doesn;t use it to the max to defeat the tide of socialists and their union cohorts.
Saw a report that there were a few hecklers at the meeting last night.. look forward to hearing a bird's eye view of the one you're attending.
Please ping people who might be able to attend or are interested. Thanks.
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