[speedgibson] Speed Gibson: The Full Time Legislature - I

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Posted by Speed Gibson:
The Full Time Legislature - I
http://speedgibson.powerblogs.com/posts/1203384812.shtml


   We have the per diem scandal, where our Legislature has cleverly
   raised their own pay, possibly illegally, certainly immorally. Many
   committees and meetings were formed to help run up those tabs. We have
   a proposal to allow the Legislature to call itself into Special
   Session at will, which would require a Constitutional Amendment. We
   can gripe all we want, but the concept of a part-time citizen
   Legislature is long since dead. Short of locking down the Capitol and
   associated offices, again by Constitutional Amendment, it's time for
   the Republicans to drop such talk. There is as much chance of that as
   enacting term limits, given who has to vote on it.
   But some reform on per diem itself may be possible. Virtually every
   city and county howled, yet significant Eminent Domain reform was
   passed recently. The Legislators smelled the fear and anger over Kelo
   decision and largely had to go along. The people understood it. Ditto
   the U. S. House Bank and Post Office scandals that helped the GOP take
   the Congress in 1994. The people understood it.
   So how do we frame the per diem scandal? It is every bit a scandal
   going back to the days of former per-diem and expense account champion
   Bill Luther. We have to present it in terms the people readily get.
   Can I overdraw my checking account? You mean corporations can move me
   off my land just because they promise to pay more taxes?
   I'd even invoke a little Management 101. You have two salaried
   employees, identical in almost every way, including results however
   measured. But Nerlman spends 60-70 hours a week, while Bob works
   pretty close to 40 hours a week, maybe even a little under. Who is the
   better employee?
   Nerlman could make a good case if he produced even 20 percent more
   output. But he doesn't. Instead, those hours of dedication are
   somewhat of a liability. There's no excess capacity. He's more likely
   to let you down for illness or unforeseen absences. You can't as
   readily send him on business trips, for the backlog will overwhelm him
   when he returns.
   So, who's the better Legislator? Committee chair Nerlman who holds 120
   days of hearings in the off-season? Or Bob, who gets his work done
   smoothly during the session, and goes home to his family and day job
   when he's supposed to?
   The truth be told, Legislator Nerlman is incompetent, and if taking
   per diem for all those hearings, possibly dishonest. The Legislature
   has time constraints, as in many professions. A surgeon has only so
   long to to perform a heart bypass operation, and there are no coffee
   breaks. A lawyer has to be to court on time and risks contempt
   citations for plainly wasting the court's time. A sports reporter has
   only so long after the game to make deadline. In fact, no employer
   will give you endless time to achieve results, even in the public
   sector. We aren't going to wait forever for that new I-35W bridge.
   If Bob can do his work and go home, why can't Nerlman? The
   expectations are in the Constitution. I'll give him a pass if it's his
   first term, but he has no excuse after that. Arguments that all those
   extra hearings make for better legislation are unprovable, and again,
   not recognized by the Minnesota Constitution. In fact, it's the
   Nerlmans that create the crazy quilt of school finance formulas that
   districts are constantly recomputing before making any significant
   decisions.
   Nerlman's bus formula requires a fancy calculator. Bob just pays the
   IRS mileage rate. And if it's at all close, the districts will
   obviously opt for the latter. Again, who is the better legislator?
   Bob.