Editorials
Tuesday, July 9, 1996
Special session
would have been a mistake
HOUSE and Senate leaders have given up on a special session of the Legislature, and wisely so. A special session would be a waste of time if the legislators had not reached agreement on the issue at hand - in this case auto insurance reform. And there was no such agreement. Under the circumstances, a special session would have been an exercise in futility. The deadlock over which way to go - strengthen the no-fault system or abolish it in favor of a return to unlimited litigation - prevented the legislators from presenting the governor with a finished product during the regular session. The same deadlock has persisted since.
As for demands that the legislators address other issues in a special session, such as abolition of the "high three" pension system, that was never in the cards, nor should it have been. Special sessions should be narrowly restricted to accomplish specific goals in a minimum of time. That means agreement before the session begins on the issue at hand. To open a special session without such agreement means a high risk of failure - and accompanying voter wrath. The legislators were nowhere near agreement on auto insurance or any other major issue.
House Speaker Joe Souki pointed out that the House was prepared to go into a special session on auto insurance reform while the Senate was too divided on the issue to proceed. This was true, but perhaps fortunately so. The House approach to the issue - abolishing no-fault - pleased Governor Cayetano but would not have solved the problem of high cost. It would have been a bonanza for the lawyers at everybody else's expense.
The Senate's holding out for a "pure" no-fault system made much more sense, because the problem now is that the threshold for lawsuits for personal injury is too low. It was this sounder approach that was embodied in the legislation passed last year. Unfortunately that bill was vetoed by Cayetano, who is himself a former trial lawyer and may be one again someday.
Souki vowed that auto insurance reform will be a top priority when the Legislature reconvenes in January in its regular session. Fine, but it should strengthen no-fault, not open the flood gates for litigation. And it should forget about that anti-business proposal of switching coverage for personal injuries to employer-paid health insurance programs.
Other editorials in brief:
Juvenile crime
SERIOUS crimes committed by juveniles have increased sharply in the past decade. The old system of conducting all juvenile proceedings in private and expunging all juvenile records once they become of age doesn't work. Youth should no longer be regarded as an opportunity to commit crimes without the risk of creating a lasting record.
While juvenile crime has become a presidential campaign issue, it is a problem that must be dealt with mainly at the local and state level. State legislators should consider directing the judiciary to treat the most violent juvenile offenders as adults, from open trial to permanent criminal record.
Taiwan in the U.N.
THE Republic of China's new foreign minister has signaled a subtle shift of emphasis. Foreign Minister John Chang said Taiwan still hoped to obtain membership in the United Nations, but called membership a long-term goal - not a top priority. In terms of population, economic development and democratic practices, Taiwan deserves to be a member of the United Nations. But this goal can be deferred in the interest of the more immediate need to improve relations with Beijing.
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John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
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