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State governing Hawaii's government is managing itself better than it did two years ago but still gets one of the lowest grades in the country, according to a new national study.
rates a ‘C’ but
getting better
A study shows Hawaii has
improved the most over the past
2 years in information technologyBy Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin
The state won an overall grade of C for the way it manages government systems that deliver public services, in a study conducted by the Maxwell School at Syracuse University and analyzed and reported in the February issue of Governing magazine.
The previous look, in 1999, resulted in a C- grade for Hawaii, when Hawaii was in the bottom six of the 50 states. The one-step climb put Hawaii this year in the bottom 11 states, but only one state got lower than a C. That was Alabama, with a C-.
The biggest improvement in Hawaii was in information technology, moving up to a C- from the worst-in-America F two years ago. Governing magazine credited Gov. Ben Cayetano's requirement that all agencies meet a statewide information-technology standard.
Cayetano issued a statement late yesterday acknowledging that the state still has room to improve but has taken some steps toward better governing.
"I'm pleased to see we improved somewhat overall," he said. "Interestingly, a more conservative group, the Cato Institute, has given our administration a B for fiscal management and the bond agencies have upgraded our ratings.
"The Governing survey correctly pointed out that we are weak in information technology, which has primarily been a budget issue," Cayetano said. "We plan to continue improvement in this area."
Hawaii's grade for financial management rose to a C from C-, but the magazine repeated its criticism of what it says is the state's high debt level.
The state's grade for human resources management also went to a C, from a C-, because of the state's move to reform civil service laws, the magazine said. "Civil service reform has failed repeatedly here," says the Governing magazine article about Hawaii's part of the survey. "But last year the Legislature finally agreed to sunset all existing civil service laws as of July 1, 2002."
The magazine quotes the state's chief labor negotiator, Davis Yogi: "We got rid of all the excuses."
Yogi said today that since 90 to 95 percent of all state workers are represented by a union, they are subject to collective bargaining agreements and it is two-sided negotiations that should set their working rules, not some archaic civil-service law.
The best-managed states this year, according to the study, were Michigan, Missouri, Utah and Washington, each with an A-.
Conducted by the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, the study was funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, headquartered in Philadelphia.
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