Blueprint for Reform - A Letter to the Residents of SC Senate District 28

To residents of Senate District 28:

I have recently helped organize the new Reform Caucus in the State Legislature. This bipartisan group of senators and representatives is dedicated to enacting much-needed reforms to change the way state government operates, so that services can be provided as efficiently as possible, and we will be able to pass savings back to the taxpayers. Our goal is to move our state into the 21st century so that our working families will prosper, be healthier, and compete more effectively in our global society. As the first step toward making these important changes a reality, we are collectively drafting an outline of the most critical items we hope to address. The following proposals are a part of our Blueprint for Reform. I would appreciate hearing any feedback you might wish to share on these proposals, or, of course, any other proposals being considered by the legislature.

BLUEPRINT for REFORM

Reform #1: Ban Taxpayer-funded Lobbyists. State agencies which receive public funds should be prohibited from employing lobbyists to influence any state or local governmental bodies.

Reform #2: Online Disclosures for all Campaigns, PAC, and Lobbyists. Allow the public to have more access to campaign finance and lobbying information by requiring all campaigns, PACs and Lobbyists to file all disclosures and reports online.

Reform #3: Abolish Competitive Grant Program to eliminate pork spending. To ensure that government funds are used in the best interest of our state, eliminate the current grant program. Require all future investments from Local Economic Stimulus Re-Investment Pool to be accompanied by an Economic Impact Estimate to ensure effective and efficient use of tax funds.

Reform #4: Require full disclosure for all campaign spending by 527s or corporate funded nonprofits. Corporate-funded special interest groups from outside our state continue to exploit campaign funding loopholes to exert financial influence on our state government which is unavailable to most citizens of our state. Any communication from any such group which mentions the name of any candidate within 45 days of any election should be subject to the same disclosure requirements as candidates and committees.

Reform #5: Public Election of the State Insurance Commissioner. Affordable, accessible insurance continues to be a major challenge in our state. To make the insurance industry as accountable as possible to South Carolina consumers, we should allow the public to elect the State Insurance Commissioner. Reform #6: Performance Audits to find and eliminate inefficiency and duplication. Periodic performance audits of each agency and program should be conducted to ensure that legislation is having the intended effect. Outside auditors can also best assess programs for inefficiency and duplication.

Reform #7: Truth-in-bidding/no change orders. When operating on taxpayer funds, it is critical to get the highest quality and greatest efficiency out of the fewest dollars. Unfortunately, some companies offer the lowest bid on a project, but run up costs later with change orders and hidden fees. The State of South Carolina should implement a strong truth-in-bidding policy to reduce costly change orders and keep costs within approved budgets.

Reform #8: Intergovernmental cooperation. Federal, state and local governments have an obligation to work together to make government operate more efficiently. There are numerous examples of duplication of services, where similar programs are funded by two or more governmental sources. Mandated coordination and cooperation between agencies will insure the most efficient allocation of resources and make sure taxpayer funds are not being wasted.

Reform #9: Five-year planning to set long-term goals and priorities. Successful businesses cannot operate without long-term plans; neither should government. We should restructure our budgeting process to recognize agreed upon long-term priorities, then develop funding strategies to meet those needs. Government cannot and should not be all things to all people. By setting priorities, programs meeting the basic needs of our citizens can be more adequately funded before tax dollars are allocated for less-essential programs. We must make sure that our most important programs are funded adequately first.

Reform #10: Sunset legislation of non-essential programs. Once a piece of legislation is passed, it should not mean that we are forever locked into paying for that plan. It is important that we revisit all legislation periodically so that we can be sure our dollars are being used as efficiently as possible. We should insist on sunset provisions for legislation of all non-essential programs.

Reform #11: Use technology to broadcast meetings of all governing boards and commissions. While state agency meetings are usually open to the public, it is simply not feasible for most citizens to attend all meetings that are important to them. Just as SC House and Senate sessions are currently broadcast live via internet, state agency meetings and cabinet meetings should be made available to the public in the same way. Many important decisions regarding the disbursement of funds, as well as new rules and regulations, are made by agencies. Internet technology can now allow taxpayers to be fully informed of decisions which will affect their lives and pocketbooks.

Again, I would appreciate hearing your ideas, opinions, suggestions or criticism on any or all of these reform proposals. Working together with other members of this new, informal, bi-partisan caucus of legislators, we can take giant strides to reform our state government.

It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your voice in the State Senate. Please let me know if I can help you on any matter. Thank you.

Senator Dick Elliott
Co-founder, S.C. Reform Caucus

p.s. -- You maysend me your comments on our Blueprint for Reform via to email at DE@SCSenate.org.