Media outlets like the Lansing State Journal and Detroit News have steadily picked up on the Center’s list of possible Lansing reform approaches published last month. So have Fresh Thoughts readers — and you’re adding to the list in vigorous online discussion. For example:
Attorney Marjorie Nanian sees ways to expunge minor criminal records as one approach to help young people become more employable. Read her idea here.
Another reader, C. Ybema, envisions state worker “bonus pools” to reward efficiency and customer services in government. “Gov’t workers on the front lines should be the first be able to detect fraud and waste and weed it out,” C. Yebema writes. “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.”
And Frank St. Onge says it’s time to review the “subtractions” in our state tax code. As the Center has noted numerous times in the past, tax breaks total more than $30 billion. Mr. St. Onge is particularly concerned about a recent idea for an early retirement offer to teachers. Not only will the pensions cost taxpayers more, the retirees will leave the state tax base because Michigan does not tax pensioners. “If we reduced the ’subtractions, we could reduce the tax rate that all of the rest of us are paying,” he writes.
Mr. St. Onge isn’t the only one concerned with a proposed teacher buyout plan that would supposedly “save” more than $400 million in this year’s state budget. The savings would come with big costs — increased long-term pension liabilities, as explained this week by Lansing State Journal editorial writer Derek Melot.
“It’s not so easy to see how promising to spend more money on people who won’t be working will make Michigan’s future a better one,” Melot writes.
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Michigan is saddled with thousands of local governments and school districts that cost millions in administrative and duplicative costs. Townships are an anachronism remaining from the days of the Northwest Ordinance when a six mile ride on horseback to the seat of governemnt consumed a lot of time. They are no longer needed. I believe millions could be saved by consolidating school districts into fewer, larger ones and eliminating townships as a form of local government, transferring their powers and authorities to counties except where incorporated cities and villages exist. Townships do not exist in the western U.S. where counties perform well as the primary unit of local government. Enough efficienies could be achieved that it might even be possible to lower local tax rates in some cases.
In addition to saving money, this should also help in our need to regionalize land use planning in Michigan by removing the current balkanized, competitive planning process.
Repeal the war on drugs.
Impose graduated income taxes on persons and businesses.
Allow metropolitan governments to be formed by majority vote in all of the proposed constituents, not majorities in each of them.
Become a democracy.
Ideas to reduce State Budget Expenses:
1. Convert all top level State Workers (i.e., Senators, House of Representatives, Governor, etc.) from their special Health Care and Retirement Plans to Social Security and 401K Plans like the rest of us.
2. Any proposed pay raises for the House and Senate should also be approved by the Governor as well, as a cross-check of powers. Last time the House and Senate raised their salaries about 35% with NO other departments needed for approval. It then became an automatic increase expense to taxpayers.
3. The Governor should NOT be allowed to travel overseas unless she works with the Congress in identifying her objective, receive Congressional approval, reveal her itinerary, fly regular class, and report back her accomplishments to the Congress. She should be working as a TEAM MEMBER with other Executive Branches in making JOBS her priority.
4. If students in Michigan colleges and universities receive scholarships from the State, then they should serve in the State of Michigan for at least 2 to 3 years instead of leaving Michigan for jobs outside of Michigan.
5. Significantly reduce the Business Tax to be competitive to other neighboring states.
6. Work closely with business owners as to what they need to expand their business in the way the State of Michigan can help (especially Manufacturing).
7. Help the automotive manufacturers survive. Tell them we need hybrids that have aerodynamic styling (like all foreign cars seem to have) and a cost of under $20K (not $40,000 like Ford’s Volt).
8. Distribute the Tax Dollars equally throughout Michigan and don’t funnel the majority to Detroit, which is the current trend.