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 Legislative molasses
by Tom Campbell
February 26, 2009
Anyone who ever tried pouring molasses out of a jar will confirm it is a slow process. But nowhere near as slow as the pace of our legislature.
It’s been four weeks since our lawmakers returned to Raleigh. Nothing of substance has been done. Committees are not meeting, daily sessions last a half-hour or less, and nobody seems to be the least bit concerned. Some try to justify the slowness, claiming that even though no committees are meeting to consider legislation, lawmakers are being briefed on various subjects, proposed legislation is being drafted, and deliberative legislation cannot be rushed.
That dog won’t hunt. Elections were held November 4th. In most every instance we knew the makeup of the legislature by the following day. Caucuses were held in both houses in December, at which time the leadership of both were selected. What happened between that time and January 28th when this session started? Committee leadership and membership could have been assembled before the session started so they could begin meeting immediately. Lawmakers could have and in fact have submitted legislation to bill drafting in the interim so that committees would have something to do. Need our legislators be reminded that our Congress, also not known for speed, put together and passed an 0 billion stimulus package in less than four weeks? While a good case can be made that Congress should have been more deliberative, the point is that government doesn’t have to be slow.
Incumbent lawmakers have been attending briefings and study committee meetings since the short session adjourned in August, so they already have a pretty good handle on things. This process could easily have been continued until such time as the legislature was fully prepared to do business. Even committee meetings could be staged in such a way that these 170 people didn’t have to be on the taxpayer’s dime 3 ½ days each week.
But even if all had been briefed, committees were meeting regularly and legislation was being considered, nothing of any significance is going to take place until after the results of personal income tax revenues are known, usually sometime in early May. This is especially true this year when revenues are so uncertain. Until legislators know how much money is available they cannot make decisions about what programs will be funded, what will be cut, and where money will be directed. In short, nothing much is going to happen until mid-May at the earliest.
So they come to Raleigh every Monday evening and leave early Thursday afternoon. Judging by current activity they could meet one, perhaps two days a week with the same results. It’s not like there isn’t plenty to be done, but we see no indications that this session is any more inclined to attack our myriad of thorny issues than previous editions.
Elected officials talk about accountability. If they are serious they should look no further than their own houses. It’s time our legislature started acting, by either getting down to business or by going home. |
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