Medicaid expansion debate derails up-or-down vote on agencies’ “sunset”
The clock is ticking for several state agencies and the Senate had scheduled to spend much of Tuesday morning deciding whether to let them continue working or to allow their charters to expire. Instead, Senate Democrats continued to slow the process with extended floor speeches after dissent over a resolution by the Republican majority opposing Medicaid expansion. Alabama law builds an expiration date into the charter that governs certain state agencies. The Sunset Committee then conducts reviews of each agency and determines whether it should terminate, continue business as usual, or modify itself toward a new purpose. The issue has taken on national importance as Republican U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne of Alabama introduced legislation last week to submit federal government agencies to a similar standard. His Sunset Inefficient and Unaccountable Government Act would subject agencies to 10-year reviews by Congress, followed by a congressional vote to renew or eliminate them. Among the agencies slated for review in the Senate on Tuesday morning were those responsible for licensing and regulating athletic agents, massage therapists, polygraph examiners, and admission to the State Bar.
Bradley Byrne: It’s time for smaller, more accountable government
When I took over as chancellor of Alabama’s two-year college system in 2007, I set out to fundamentally change the way our community college system operates. It didn’t take long before I started running into resistance. Time and time again, I heard the phrase “Well, that’s just the way it has always been done.” To me, that’s not an acceptable answer. As people, and as a government, we should always be looking for ways to improve and become more efficient. The same rule should apply to the federal government. President Ronald Reagan once said that “no government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. So government’s programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth.” Reagan hit the nail on the head. I’ve only been in Washington for one year and four months, but it is clear that the federal government is too big. Since our nation was founded, the size of government has continually increased. In fact, I believe our Founding Fathers would be appalled to see the endless maze of agencies that the federal government has become. It seems that while the Washington bureaucracy gets bigger, the main street economy just gets smaller. For every federal agency created, that’s just one more department issuing regulations and mandates that often times restrict small businesses. It also seems like as the federal government gets larger, our personal freedoms get smaller and smaller. Have you ever heard of the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars or the National Contact Center? What about the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee? The merits of those organizations aside, I hope you get my point. The federal government is too big, and it is time we act to rein it in. That’s why I introduced the Ala, known as the Sunset Act. My bill would require Congress to review and renew the more than 275 government departments, agencies and boards on a staggered basis every 10 years. Agencies and departments directly related to national security would be exempt from being abolished. My bill would put the burden on federal agencies and departments to justify their existence and explain to Congress why they deserve to continue. Without congressional renewal, the agencies will cease to exist. Congress will be forced to study and review the bloated federal government, and federal agencies will have to prove their worth and tighten their belts in order to remain in existence. This isn’t a foreign idea. In fact, Alabama already has a Sunset Committee at the state level. When I was in the Alabama State Senate, we had to renew state agencies on a rotating basis, and it was an effective way to hold agencies accountable and ensure they remain responsive to the people. Washington could benefit from some of that Alabama common sense. I think two likely outcomes would come from my Sunset Act. First, I think some unnecessary agencies will cease to exist, and duplicative agencies will be combined. Secondly, I think the agencies that we do decide to keep will become more efficient and accountable, likely reducing the size and scope of what they do. In both cases, the American people would benefit. Let’s stop accepting “that’s just the way it has always been done” as a credible reason for doing things. Let’s shake up the way Washington is run. Let’s remember that government is supposed to work for the people, not the other way around. It is time we bring some accountability to the federal government. My Sunset Act would do just that, and I look forward to building support for this commonsense approach in Congress.
Auditor Jim Zeigler continues to lead way in cuts and savings; Where are others?
Promises to cut costs and shrink government are frequent among conservatives during election years. You’d be hard pressed to find a candidate who didn’t talk about these in the last several cycles as big government has became an easy target as state and federal budgets ballooned. The question I pose today is why aren’t we hearing more plans for cost cutting and savings when the budget is the biggest focus in the state? State Auditor Jim Zeigler continues his crusade to address avenues where money can be saved with his latest recommendation to eliminate the office of the Examiners of Public Accounts. In a release sent by his office sent, he notes that the $13 million budget of the examiners office could be shifted to the state parks. Beyond the cost savings, Zeigler’s release states, “The plan will provide more timely audits, because the Examiners are seriously late in their audits. Some state agencies have already privatized their auditing, paying money from their own budgets to obtain an audit they previously got free from the Examiners.” It’s doubtful the Legislature would actually take Zeigler up on his plan to get rid of the Examiners office. Functions of the job would need to continue, especially for the reviews needed for the Sunset Committee. The point is where are all of the other ideas? Why aren’t their reports every day of ideas as bold as Zeigler’s? Zeigler has said he’ll update his proposed plan on Tuesday. We’ll stay tuned for more from him and encourage other elected officials at every level of government to follow his lead and begin making suggestions as well.
Bradley Byrne bill would impose up-or-down reviews on federal agencies
On Thursday, Republican U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne of Alabama introduced legislation that would submit government agencies to 10-year reviews by Congress, followed by a congressional vote to renew or eliminate them. Byrne modeled The Sunset Inefficient and Unaccountable Government Act, known as the Sunset Act, after Alabama’s Sunset Committee. That committee of 12 members of the House and Senate is tasked with conducting four-year reviews of certain state agencies. Although Alabama’s Sunset Committee has discretion to review any agency at any time, state agencies with sunset provisions in their statutes are automatically set to terminate after four years. The committee can review the agency’s performance and recommend that it continue or modify its work. Byrne’s Sunset Act would grant exemption to federal agencies deemed essential to national security. Byrne issued a prepared statement Thursday: “Our Founding Fathers would be appalled to see the endless maze of agencies that the federal government has become. Our government is in desperate need of reform and a return to our basic responsibilities. The Washington bureaucracy has become too big, and the heavy hand of government is hurting the American taxpayers. “It is time we rein in the federal government, and the Sunset Act would pave the way for much needed reforms. My bill would require Congress to renew all federal agencies on a staggered basis every 10 years. Without renewal, the agencies will cease to exist. Under this legislation, Congress will be forced to study and review the bloated federal government and get serious about ending unnecessary or duplicative federal agencies. “Washington could benefit from some Alabama common sense, and I look forward to building support for my legislation in Congress.”
