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Minnesota House of Representatives

State Representative Duane Quam

323 State Office BuildingState Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-9236

For more information contact: Jason Wenisch 651-296-2317

Posted: 2011-01-21 00:00:00
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NEWS COLUMN

AN EFFICIENT PLAN TO END LAST MINUTE GOVERNMENT SPENDING

Early last year I attended a meeting of the RCTC college faculty union. One of the topics brought up centered on how to best spend money that remained on their current budget before the funds disappeared.

We’ve all heard “Christmas in June” stories like this from state agencies. For example, let’s say an agency receives $1 million a year in government funds. With 30 days left before the budget year expires, it has only spent $850,000. So the mad dash begins to spend the remaining $150,000 before the end of the budget cycle, because if those funds remain unspent, their government assumes they can get by with less and may only allocate them $850,000 during the next budget cycle.

I talked with several members, who wanted more control and flexibility, about how they would like to see this process improved. I presented an idea to share whatever remained at the end of the year, put part of it into a reserve fund, and let them decide what to use it for at a later date.

Based on their input, I am chief-authoring legislation that will establish a retained savings program for branch agencies. The State Agency Value Initiative (SAVI) encourages innovation and creative cost savings by state employees, and the reward is allowing 50% of any unspent funds by an agency to be set aside for future projects. The only caveat is that projects must not create future obligations and must support the agency’s mission.

All agencies, including Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MNSCU), may participate. A peer review panel will ultimately determine which proposal or project receives funding from SAVI if more than one is identified.

I’ve been concerned for a while about last minute spending and the waste it creates, and I believe this would be a good first step towards promoting government efficiency. Plus, it encourages the rank-and-file membership within an agency to have ownership in what’s most important for them. For instance, maybe there’s an expensive software package out there that the agency would like to have, but without funds in the current budget it can’t make the purchase. Wouldn’t it make more sense to allow it to bank some current budget funds and buy the software when enough money was available? Certainly that is better than buying a new printer or computer monitor simply because remaining funds had to be used before the year ended.

We are dealing with professional employees across state government. It’s time we give them our power and some trust as we transition into a more efficient government system.

As for other bills I'm working on, I have legislation that will rewrite the language on the Oronoco Dam so it includes a study of the bank and surrounding area so we do a more comprehensive job in the years ahead. In addition, I'm also establishing a rural medical delivery bill, the goal of which is to determine how to better deliver medical care to rural Minnesota communities. I'm looking for public feedback on this, and welcome your ideas. Please feel free to contact me at rep.duane.quam@house.mn or call 651-296-9236 and share your thoughts.

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