Overhauling
bureaucracy
By Rob Perez
Star-BulletinIF Hawaii wants to get serious about pumping new life into the economy, it must overhaul the basic systems under which state government operates, says state Rep. Ed Case.
The Manoa Democrat said the size and cost of operating state government have become major drags on the economy, partly because tax dollars are being siphoned from the private sector and spent in an inefficient manner.
The collective bargaining and civil service systems, which deal with everything from hiring and firing procedures to salary and benefit packages, are major factors in an inefficient bureaucracy, said Case, who was among House Democrats who unsuccessfully pushed for a major overhaul bill in the recent legislative session.
Case said aspects of those systems, some of which haven't changed in nearly 30 years, must be revised to reflect the realities of a more-global marketplace.
The reform bill, among other things, would have:
Limited the scope of what is negotiable in contract bargaining.
"We will not have true economic reform in this state until we take state government apart and put it back together again according to today's modern world," Case said.
David Ramsour, an economic consultant, said Hawaii's union-heavy bureaucracy has become a drag on economic growth, but he says proving that is problematic.
"I think it's true. The question is how do you measure that? A great deal (of evidence) is anecdotal."
Bank of Hawaii economist Paul Brewbaker likewise sees a connection. Even if the current effect on the economy is small, over a long period the economic damage from an inefficient government can be significant, he said.
But Lawrence Boyd, a University of Hawaii labor economist, said many factors that have nothing to do with unionization are affecting the economy.
Boyd also said studies show no link between economic growth and the degree of unionism in a state.
