eBay Founder Pierre Omidyar once said, "I've got a passion for solving a problem that I think I can solve in a new way. And that maybe it helps that nobody has done it before as well."
As a state, Californian is a state long on problems (aka challenges) and short on solutions, especially when it comes to creating jobs. This applies to our current underserved workforce and to our future workforce, currently challenged in attaining excellence in the classroom. Wouldn't you agree? These challenges come in all shapes and sizes; and, at all levels: globally, nationally, statewide, regionally, and locally. Over the last several decades, many well intentioned efforts have attempted to return the golden state to prominence, firing on all cylinders, if you will! A number of governors and elected officials have come and gone, yet many of us still feel underwhelmed by their results.
So the predictable question many business people have is how do we move forward, out of this economic malaise? One group's goal is to facilitate fundamental change to "a government that's small enough to listen, big enough to tackle real problems, smart enough to spend our money wisely, and honest enough to be held accountable for results.
California Forward's mission is to work with Californians to help create a "smart" government. Founded in 2007 by five major California foundations, they maintain they're different from other efforts to reform our state, because they believe in the importance of working together and understand that only robust public discussion and the creation of broad coalitions can move solutions forward.
They believe that continuous improvement in the performance of education and social programs will allow the state to shift resources from prisons back to universities. Efficiencies and innovation in regulation will allow businesses to pay higher wages, while still remaining competitive. Growing middle-income jobs will reduce demand for public services and increase tax revenue. Moreover, restructuring California's government can be the beginning of a cycle, improved education, increased employment, decreased poverty, improved health, and less crime, that can lead to the best possible outcome: A government that achieves positive social gains in a financially sustainable way. Their "three-legged stool" of reform-based solutions includes proposed structural changes to the state's governance, fiscal, and operational processes that will achieve: improved education, increased employment, decreased poverty, decreased crime, and improved health.
First Leg: a disciplined and performance-focused fiscal system, California needs a state budget process that will prevent lawmakers from making promises they can't keep and ensure public resources are well spent. It also needs to evolve the tax structure to reflect the evolving economy, and to support structural changes designed to improve community and regional services, like Budget Reform: performance-based budgeting; multi-year budget planning; pay-as-you-go for new programs and tax reductions; and, manage volatile revenue and increase reserves. Also Revenue Reform: tax structure aligned to the new economy; and, revenue allocation aligned to structural changes to improve results and accountability.
Second Leg: a structure that delivers results and accountability – State and local agencies need to work together to advance five overarching outcomes: employment opportunities, educational achievement, poverty reduction, public safety and health status. Many specific challenges must be addressed by local and regional governments sharing strategies and resources to achieve common objectives. For example, empower local governments; create incentives for local governments to cooperate on regional challenges; revitalize educational systems; and, negotiate pensions.
Third Leg: a vibrant and responsive democracy – California's size, and the dynamics of a global economy, demand that we rethink the relationship between people and their elected representatives. Our large, growing and diverse population requires new rules to encourage voter participation, and to increase the responsiveness of elected officials. How? Implement and support top-two open primary and the citizens redistricting commission; term limit reform; campaign finance full disclosure; refine the initiative process; increase voter involvement; and, legislative structural reforms to improve voter representation.
California Forward states it's committed to partnering with others across the state to develop all three of these reform efforts. For more information, please visit their website at www.cafwd.org. So the question remains: how passionate are YOU in helping find solutions – in a new way, to move our economy forward?
As a state, Californian is a state long on problems (aka challenges) and short on solutions, especially when it comes to creating jobs. This applies to our current underserved workforce and to our future workforce, currently challenged in attaining excellence in the classroom. Wouldn't you agree? These challenges come in all shapes and sizes; and, at all levels: globally, nationally, statewide, regionally, and locally. Over the last several decades, many well intentioned efforts have attempted to return the golden state to prominence, firing on all cylinders, if you will! A number of governors and elected officials have come and gone, yet many of us still feel underwhelmed by their results.
So the predictable question many business people have is how do we move forward, out of this economic malaise? One group's goal is to facilitate fundamental change to "a government that's small enough to listen, big enough to tackle real problems, smart enough to spend our money wisely, and honest enough to be held accountable for results.
California Forward's mission is to work with Californians to help create a "smart" government. Founded in 2007 by five major California foundations, they maintain they're different from other efforts to reform our state, because they believe in the importance of working together and understand that only robust public discussion and the creation of broad coalitions can move solutions forward.
They believe that continuous improvement in the performance of education and social programs will allow the state to shift resources from prisons back to universities. Efficiencies and innovation in regulation will allow businesses to pay higher wages, while still remaining competitive. Growing middle-income jobs will reduce demand for public services and increase tax revenue. Moreover, restructuring California's government can be the beginning of a cycle, improved education, increased employment, decreased poverty, improved health, and less crime, that can lead to the best possible outcome: A government that achieves positive social gains in a financially sustainable way. Their "three-legged stool" of reform-based solutions includes proposed structural changes to the state's governance, fiscal, and operational processes that will achieve: improved education, increased employment, decreased poverty, decreased crime, and improved health.
First Leg: a disciplined and performance-focused fiscal system, California needs a state budget process that will prevent lawmakers from making promises they can't keep and ensure public resources are well spent. It also needs to evolve the tax structure to reflect the evolving economy, and to support structural changes designed to improve community and regional services, like Budget Reform: performance-based budgeting; multi-year budget planning; pay-as-you-go for new programs and tax reductions; and, manage volatile revenue and increase reserves. Also Revenue Reform: tax structure aligned to the new economy; and, revenue allocation aligned to structural changes to improve results and accountability.
Second Leg: a structure that delivers results and accountability – State and local agencies need to work together to advance five overarching outcomes: employment opportunities, educational achievement, poverty reduction, public safety and health status. Many specific challenges must be addressed by local and regional governments sharing strategies and resources to achieve common objectives. For example, empower local governments; create incentives for local governments to cooperate on regional challenges; revitalize educational systems; and, negotiate pensions.
Third Leg: a vibrant and responsive democracy – California's size, and the dynamics of a global economy, demand that we rethink the relationship between people and their elected representatives. Our large, growing and diverse population requires new rules to encourage voter participation, and to increase the responsiveness of elected officials. How? Implement and support top-two open primary and the citizens redistricting commission; term limit reform; campaign finance full disclosure; refine the initiative process; increase voter involvement; and, legislative structural reforms to improve voter representation.
California Forward states it's committed to partnering with others across the state to develop all three of these reform efforts. For more information, please visit their website at www.cafwd.org. So the question remains: how passionate are YOU in helping find solutions – in a new way, to move our economy forward?