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December 4, 2009

Forum: Time for reform is overdue

By SEN. GRETCHEN WHITMER

With Michigan's schools facing devastating cuts and our college students waiting to hear if they will get the scholarship money that was promised to them, you would think Lansing politicians would know better than to take a two-week holiday. But once again, the Legislature is out of touch and took another unnecessary vacation while the future of our state remains in limbo. This is exactly why people have lost their faith in government, and we need to start showing some real leadership to turn this state around.

There is no reason that legislators should be protecting their own pay, benefits and special perks while we ask our schools and communities to bear the budget burden. Everyone is tightening their belts, and it's the height of hypocrisy for politicians to think they shouldn't be doing so as well.

That's why I have called for immediate, long-term reforms -- and why I'm leading by example by donating my legislative expense account to a charity each month.

My plan is to reduce lawmakers' salaries, prorate their pay anytime local school funding is prorated, and end their taxpayer-funded lifetime health benefits. Our lawmakers are the second-highest paid in the nation at $79,650 a year and they receive lifetime benefits after just six years of service. We can't afford it anymore.

Additional reforms include a pay reduction every time they miss session and requiring that candidates and elected officials disclose their income and assets.

I have fought for months to save nearly three million dollars just by reducing Senate office budgets all down to an equal, lower level. I would also force lawmakers to provide documentation of what they use their $1,000-a-month expense accounts for and post that information online.

These changes alone will not solve Michigan's long-term budget woes, but they may at least begin to restore some confidence in legislators' ability to share in the pain it causes.

Shortchanging our kids' education and taking cops off the street while leaving their own salaries, benefits and perks untouched is unconscionable. We must change the way lawmakers do business if we ever hope to help pull each other out of this mess.

In most other jobs, employees are assessed by their work performance and ability to meet deadlines. If the Legislature was held to these similar standards how would they fare? State government has shut down twice in the last three years and more time is wasted on political gamesmanship than instituting real change to improve Michigan.

To end this notion that they should be held to different standards than their constituents, I am challenging my colleagues to enact common-sense reforms to help fix our broken government.

About the author: Sen. Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing, lives in East Lansing with her two daughters.

About the forum: The forum is a periodic column of opinion written by Record-Eagle readers in their areas of interest or expertise. Submissions of 500 words or less may be made by e-mailing letters@record-eagle.com. Please include biographical information and a photo.

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