As
lawmakers wrestle with the budget deficit, passionate
observers
surround the grapplers in the ring. Some people may
not
be interested in how legislators cut several billion dollars
from
projected spending, but they won’t be found in Olympia
this
session. And they won’t be found in the business community,
which
has a vital stake in state fiscal policy.
This
is nothing new to Washington Business readers. The
Association
of Washington Business has long championed
budget
sustainability and competitive tax and regulatory
policies.
Thrive Washington, a partnership between the
Washington
Roundtable and Washington Research Council,
is
a research and communications effort to promote that
integrated
business agenda.
When
we launched Thrive Washington last fall, we had a simple
objective:
Provide good, workable policy recommendations for
restructuring
state government
and
stimulating economic vitality.
Like
AWB, the Washington
Alliance
for a Competitive
Economy,
and other state and local business groups, we
recognized
the opportunity and obligation to offer constructive
solutions
to the vexing problems facing our business and political
leaders.
The
initial work product is a series of white papers —short,
prescriptive
research reports that examine fundamental public
policies,
diagnose problems and recommend solutions. We review
the
academic literature, look at best practices from business and
government,
and apply lessons learned to inform this state’s
policymakers.
Three
years into the fiscal downturn, optimism is hard to
sustain.
As I brief business and civic groups on economic and
budget
issues, I know people fervently look for good news, the
signal
that things are turning around. But a candid assessment of
the
short-term outlook is generally bleak. (I’ve learned to ask the
wait
staff to remove sharp objects from the tables before I begin
my
presentations.)
It
makes no sense to deny the transformative nature of the
deepest,
longest recession since World War II. The reality must
be
confronted. But at the same time, we must look beyond the
crisis.
Policymakers must use this time to restructure, develop
new
ways to do what must be done, and jettison extraneous
programs
and policies launched in another time.
That’s
what we try to do in Thrive Washington. We acknowledge
current
fiscal realities, but we do not let them constrain our policy
recommendations
for the future.
Our
first paper, “Charting a New Course,” examines how other
states
are handling their fiscal crises, restructuring governmental
operations,
tackling spending and rebuilding public confidence.
Subsequent
publications will offer more detail on how Washington
can
build a sustainable state budget, control health care spending,
improve
health care outcomes and stimulate economic activity.
Some
of the ideas will be familiar to AWB members. We
advocate
smart contracting out to capitalize on private sector
efficiencies.
We recommend ways for lawmakers to manage
better
the size and compensation of the state workforce. We call
for
management reorganization and regulatory reform.
A
common — and optimistic — theme runs through all
of
the Thrive Washington recommendations. As stated in
“Charting
a New Course,” we believe the coming transformation
of
state government “does not require Washingtonians to
lower
their expectations.
Smaller
government can be
more
responsive, efficient,
productive
and accountable…
[B]y
setting state spending at a sustainable level, state officials
can
spur investment and job creation, thus stabilizing revenues
to
support essential public services.”
I
think optimism, while scarce, is warranted. Working
together,
we can help the Legislature understand that the right
decisions
made now will have profound, positive long-term
consequences.
Let them hear from you.
