[Speed Gibson,
Tuesday May 10, 2005 at 11:22pm]
Count me out
King at SCSU Scholars writes:
Add to this the idea of the postcard "taxpayer satisfaction" survey and other limits the Pawlenty administration is trying to impose on local units of government.
King is right, this is the proverbial blunt instrument, accusing all units of local government as likely equally wasteful. To be fair, Governor Pawlenty correctly observed that that local government aid (LGA) has reached ridiculous levels in outstate Minnesota. Fine, pull that back some.
But otherwise, leave me out, including the postcards that my heroes Strom and Krinke heartily endorse. Local elections are sufficient control. The Governor should focus instead on state mandates and other needlessly encumbering state regulations. No city willing to ignore "Smart Growth" and "Livable Communities Acts" should be penalized for such decisions. But today they are, and have to spend still more money complying with them. And then there is K-12 education...
Laissez Faire!
I find this a curious notion; we're again finding a Republican administration and the House pushing to manage local school district budgets with a very blunt instrument. I'm hoping someone will explain to me why this is a good idea.
Add to this the idea of the postcard "taxpayer satisfaction" survey and other limits the Pawlenty administration is trying to impose on local units of government.
King is right, this is the proverbial blunt instrument, accusing all units of local government as likely equally wasteful. To be fair, Governor Pawlenty correctly observed that that local government aid (LGA) has reached ridiculous levels in outstate Minnesota. Fine, pull that back some.
But otherwise, leave me out, including the postcards that my heroes Strom and Krinke heartily endorse. Local elections are sufficient control. The Governor should focus instead on state mandates and other needlessly encumbering state regulations. No city willing to ignore "Smart Growth" and "Livable Communities Acts" should be penalized for such decisions. But today they are, and have to spend still more money complying with them. And then there is K-12 education...
Laissez Faire!