Comments on: $1.5 Billion in MI Reform Choices

By: dennis schrantz

dennis schrantz — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 02:30:56 +0000

Cheer the Governor on corrections cuts people. You call for it and we provide it and all you do is call for more. This is the biggest decarceration effort in the history of the U.S. Pay attention and be realistic on how much further cuts cn go. Bone is all that is left. Do you want marrow?

By: tammy

tammy — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 13:12:19 +0000

I agree with Mr. Visel; there is more accountiblity with a governemnt closer to the people. He also states “Don’t need to consolidate school districts (big big part of community identity), but should consider consolidating and/or privatizing administration, transportation, food service, etc. across districts.” That would save a tremendous amount of money for the K-12 portion of the budget, yet a bill initiated in 2007 to do just that was watered down by the time it was passed and ended up being a complete waste of time (see HB 4592 – 2007). Hopefully this will be brought up once again. The ISDs are a level of state bureaucracy and that means they should be looked at also.

By: Frank St.Onge

Frank St.Onge — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 02:49:59 +0000

While we talk about cutting costs we better start addressing the equality of the taxing side of the state activities. It is time that the legislature and the administration seriously review the “subtractions” that are allowed on our tax return. If we reduced the amount of what is allowed as “subtractions”, we could reduce the tax rate that all the rest of the taxpayers are paying and increase the revenue collected. The recent articles about 90,000 teachers being provided an incentive of $6,000 more in pension benefits to retire after 30 years of teaching will cost us $540 Million more per year in pension payments. At the same time, these same taxpayers will no longer be paying $3,000 per year in state taxes because their pension benefits are not taxed and they will be eligible for a property tax credit of $1,200 per year. Combined this will cost the state another $450 Million in lost revenues from just these 90,000 retired teachers. This will result in another $1 Billion shortfall. If we don’t address these issues the revenue shortfall crisis will be even more serious than what it has been in the past.

By: C Ybema

C Ybema — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 00:31:53 +0000

With term limits in place it is clear that the bureaucracy runs Lansing now–I don’t know how the formula works given union representation–but why can’t we incentivize government workers at all levels by creating a bonus pool for each government department. Departments that come in under budget or that can squeeze out efficiencies can keep a large percentage of their gains/savings. Gov’t workers on the front lines should be the first be able to detect fraud and waste and weed it out. Gov’t workers as workers everywhere take pride in their jobs and do not like being told they are overpaid–this creates the right environment for productivity.

By: Lucas Showerman

Lucas Showerman — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 17:36:47 +0000

First of all, do not make any cuts on teachers health benefits. It’s what makes being a teacher worth the $50k difference in non-teacher salaries. Second to help with crime issues, start with youth’s education. We need to make education enjoyable! A good example is the learning of sheet music. Sheet music is a whole other language, but somehow people can learn how to read it at amazing rates. That’s because music is learned through the heart and the head. Americans are known for their ability to dream (Which uses the heart and head). We need to incorporate this into our youths every day lives. We need to encourage their imaginations because imaginations lead to dreams and with advancement dreams can become possible.

By: Barry Visel

Barry Visel — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 14:30:22 +0000

Little things can help as well. Here are a couple of examples:

1. Eliminate child day care licensing…this is a parents responsibility, not the state (which based on my past experience doesn’t do a good job anyway). Not sure of cost savings. If not eliminsted, make it optional, with licensees paying full cost of license for the opportunity to ‘market’ themselves as ’state licensed’ (should anyone think that designation has meaning).

2. Allow citizens to ‘volunteer’ service to planning commissions and similar boards. Because of an AG Opinion, I can’t be an unpaid PC member because the Township has chosen to pay other members…should be my choice…the state statute is permissive as to whether to pay, and that permissiveness should pass down to me. I get paid about 6 times what I pay in taxes, and I would gladly volunteer (giving the money back is not the same thing either because the Township still has to process payroll and I still have to pay taxes on the income).

Regarding local government consolidation… 1. if the theory of economy of scales worked in government, tax rates for cities and villages would be way below townships…That’s not the case by a long shot, 2. The closer government is to the people the better (generally) things seem to work…a little thing called accountability, 3. Don’t need to consolidate school districts (big big part of community identity), but should consider consolidating and/or privatizing administration, transportation, food service, etc. across districts.

By: Chuck Fellows

Chuck Fellows — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 14:19:35 +0000

Health care is most often correctly identified as a cost problem.

It is no longer a question that the form and method of delivering health care in the US is the most expensive and least effective in the developed world.

Universal single payor health works better and is significantly less expensive than our current system. Private insurance no longer works.

Savings from moving in this direction will dwarf the $1.5 billion you have identified.

Nationally this nation spends $745 billion on education and about $550 billion on defense.

The health care change will significantly reduce the cost of education. Recognizing that 50% of the staffing for schools is administrative should lead to the conclusion that making education more effective requires a reduction in this ratio – and some school districts are already doing it via half timing administrative staff (eliminating health care as well as lowering salary costs).

Also in education increase educational effectiveness and reduce long term all inclusive costs (what we should really be looking at)by creating small schools within schools, moving away from age grading and curriculum silos (learning what is needed for the 21st will take less time) and dropping the expensive but cognitively useless standardized testing and NCLB-AYP requirements.Taking action such as this in the business world reduces waste by approximately 40% to 70%.

The list presented is a good one but it will not create the profound changes that are necessary. Face the reality of our broken health care system and step up to our responsibility to reality check how we deliver the most important activity for the future of this state – educating our children.

Finally, complel the legislature to cease non cost reducing legislation and spend the next year in a collective effort to rid our legal code of ineffective law and regulation. Require all 83 counties and 1,400 plus local units to consolidate and standardize their codes of ordinances. That action will save individuals and small businesses, especially small businesses, a ton of time and money.

These are real, long lasting, game changing cost savings actions. All that is lacking is the will to do it! And that’s a human problem.

By: brokengovt

brokengovt — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 00:01:01 +0000

How about “ONE” HR department for all the state employees? Why does each department have their own?
The list of waste and failure of MDOT is large and on-going. I never see this arena approached. There isn’t hardly a taxpayer who does not have a “story” to tell on this issue. This department could easily be entirely outsourced.
A 5% pay and benefit cut for the Gov and legislators is a gesture at best. They don’t want to be a part legislature like most other states so simply pay them the prevailing part-time legislature pay and benefits. Don’t like it? Move aside, others will be available. Living within the budget based on revenues is not hard just because it is state government. They make it hard.

By: Jim Rudolph

Jim Rudolph — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 15:56:13 +0000

I agree that there should be an assessment of the efficient and cost effective delivery of services. I totally reject that township government should automatically be eliminated. An MSU study found that township services were the most economical and residents rate their services highest.

By: John Czarnecki

John Czarnecki — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 19:06:20 +0000

I would agree with Mr Phillips that some consolidation is in order at all local levels city, township and county. Functions of the various levels of local government should also be evaluated. Do we need all the state universities we have? We should begin to pay the true cost of our settlement patterns. Why do we have free park and ride on the interstate system.