By fitsnews – June 18, 2012
HERE IS YOUR MUSICAL CHAIRS UPDATE …
A legislative committee tasked with “restructuring” South Carolina’s dysfunctional state government postponed a scheduled hearing this week on account of a death in the family of S.C. Sen. Larry Martin (RINO-Pickens).
Yeah … we were sad the death in the family wasn’t Senator Martin, too (kidding, kidding … sort of).
Anyway, Martin is one of a handful of lawmakers attempting to reconcile competing proposals passed this session by the S.C. House and the State Senate. Sadly, neither proposal comes close to the comprehensive government overhaul proposed over a decade ago by then-gubernatorial candidate Mark Sanford – who could never get lawmakers to pass his ambitious reforms.
That’s why we’ve referred to both bills as “restructuring in name only.”
Current Gov. Nikki Haley? She’s been everywhere and nowhere on this issue. After campaigning on a Sanford-esque government overhaul, Haley immediately reversed course after taking office – cutting a backroom deal with powerful S.C. Senator Hugh Leatherman that would have actually grown government and diminished accountability (i.e. the exact opposite of what “restructuring” is supposed to do).
Fortunately, Haley was forced to abandon that deal – but only after a coalition of fiscal conservatives shamed her into doing so.
The version of government restructuring that passed by the S.C. House of Representatives this session is very weak. It creates a cabinet-level Department of Administration (shifting significant responsibilities from the state’s unaccountable S.C. Budget and Control Board) – but it fails to address the broader problem of the legislative branch intruding upon functions that ought to be the exclusive purview of the executive branch.
(To view a breakdown of that bill, click here).
The Senate version of the bill, on the other hand, actually adds new employees as well creating new boards and commissions – again, growing government and further splintering accountability. The Senate legislation also preserves the hated SCB&CB – while adding numerous new bureaucratic positions to other agencies.
(To view a breakdown of that bill, click here).
Neither of these bills is acceptable.
Lawmakers had a chance to get restructuring right when S.C. Rep. Boyd Brown proposed an amendment that would have dissolved the SCB&CB and placed all of its functions under the governor’s office. Sadly, Haley lobbied against that amendment – and only seven Republicans supported it.
(To see the roll call vote on this amendment, click here).
Of course changing the title on a bunch of agency letterhead doesn’t change the fact that there are far too many agencies in this state to begin with.
South Carolina has a government that is too large, too discombobulated and far too corrupt. And while the thinking has long been that placing more state agencies under the control of the governor’s cabinet would enhance efficiency and accountability, that clearly hasn’t happened (although we do now at least know who to blame when these agencies fuck up).
Based on a decade of fighting for specific restructuring proposals, we’ve come to the conclusion that our state needs government reduction more than it needs government restructuring – particularly after a decade of unchecked growth that has far exceeded taxpayers’ ability to sustain. Therefore we need legislation that alternately consolidates, streamlines and eliminates various state agencies as opposed to just slapping new names on them.
Sadly, Haley is too busy letting Columbia special interests manage this process to actually focus on the best interests of taxpayers – yet another example of her multi-front betrayal of the movement she claims to lead.
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