by WA State Senator Cal Anderson
While other Democrats around the state were taking an electoral drubbing last November, Cal Anderson was winning his first race for State Senate in the 43rd District with 81% of the vote. In his 7 years in the State House, Anderson has distinguished himself by his tireless work on issues ranging from fighting discrimination to growth management. He just received the ACLU of Washington's 1994 Civil Libertarian award. In this article he discusses new initiatives designed to revitalize public trust in government.Over the last decade, there has been a dramatic increase in the demand for government services. At the same time, there has been an increasing dissatisfaction with the performance of government.
The increased demand is reflected in the new programs and growing service levels associated with crime prevention and correctional facilities, juvenile rehabilitation, environmental protection, low-income housing, childrens' services, services for an expanding elderly population, drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs, mother and infant health care, growth management, and a rapidly growing school age population.
Public dissatisfaction with government is reflected in the content of political campaigns which attack government and its employees, passage of a term limitation initiative, talk shows and media coverage highlighting the perceived failures of government, and passage of an initiative limiting state spending.
Most responses have been quick fixes. The public's perception of government didn't noticeably improve, nor did state operations become more efficient. State budgets cut "waste" by slashing equipment, travel, jobs, and by not granting salary increases to state employees, including teachers. These measures did not improve performance. They actually had the opposite effect. They didn't improve service delivery or program effectiveness. They instead demoralized state employees, teachers and managers.
The public expected government to do more and expected more from its employees. At the same time, the message was sent that state workers weren't to be trusted, valued, or expected to make good decisions.
Government has been forced to re-think how it does business; quick fixes are not the answer. The 1994 Legislature created the Washington Performance Partnership charged with improving state government. Here is a section of the enacting legislation:
"The State of Washington expects to be the most effective and best performing state government in the United States, measured in terms of quality of customer service, accountability for cost-effective services, and productivity."The Washington Performance Partnership was created by following the direction many organizations have taken during the last 20 years. Organizations have shared their experiences with the Governor and legislative leaders. These organizations had the choice of changing the way they were being run or succumbing to the global challenge of other organizations who were out-performing them.
Just as many of these organizations had visited Japan to examine the management models used by their major companies, the State of Washington has looked to them for management models to apply to government. The legislation creating the Washington Performance Partnership was designed with the advice of experts from a variety of organizations as well as representatives from business, labor and government.
Here are the key elements I believe we have to follow if we are to promote a progressive agenda in Olympia:
- Committed Leadership - There must be a complete commitment from the leaders of the state. In addition, we must support and encourage progressive people to run for office so a progressive agenda can be advanced.
- Commitment to Employees - There must be a trust and reliance on employees. They are the most valuable asset. An investment must be made in training, and employees must be empowered to make decisions.
- Commitment to the Customer - Government must focus on serving the customer. In this case, the customer is not only the traditional recipient of a government services, but the people at large.
- Commitment to Objective Measures of Performance - Continuous improvement against objective measures is essential to improving the performance of government. The Washington Performance Partnership will establish performance goals and measure achievement toward them. It is essential that progressive people be involved in this process.
- A Long-Term Commitment to Quality - The Washington Performance Partnership is not a quick fix. It is a good beginning toward restoring confidence in government. It involves a change in the culture of state government. The Partnership is set up to begin improvements quickly and to establish a process to make them continuous.
The Partnership represents a complete change in the approach leaders have been taking to managing state government. It commits to provide quality services in government. The need for progressive individuals to be involved in this process cannot be overstated. If we are to make advances and protect progressive programs, we need to be "at the table" participating.
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Contents on this page were published in the December/January 1995 edition of the Washington Free Press.
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