Guest writer

More with less

Government efficiency possible

Efficiency involves doing more with less. Arkansas households and commercial enterprises meet this challenge on a daily basis, with technological advances that generate productivity increases playing a greater role.

But can efficiency increase within government? Skepticism exists across the policy spectrum: Government is either inherently inefficient or forced to provide reduced services when efficiency is a goal. Is a happy medium possible between polar opposites?

The questions are topical because freshman Gov. Asa Hutchinson issued a hiring freeze on his first day in office. Inspired by the governor's directive, citizen volunteers led by our nonprofit sought answers to these questions.

Governor Hutchinson declared last December that Arkansans "deserve a critical evaluation of their state government to ensure the cost-effective delivery of services and to ensure that state employees have every possible means necessary to maximize their effectiveness." Armed with a two-page questionnaire, we discovered 184 efficiency initiatives in state government, and problems that must be addressed.

State agencies use various approaches to efficiency and services. Examples include Agriculture and Labor consolidating employee functions and office space. Community Corrections and Health use privatization, which includes contracting out, shedding, and franchising. Environmental Quality uses technology to streamline services; Insurance, State Bank and Workforce Services to operate with smaller work forces. Aeronautics operates with five staff members and a "Keep It Simple'" method. The National Guard uses a "Lean Six Sigma" productivity measure that seeks "maximum productivity with minimum wasted effort or expense."

The outer range of savings from these 184 initiatives is $13.5 million. A second report by national consultants found $312 million in state receivables.

To achieve greater savings, a cultural shift must occur within state government. Agency officials support efficiency as a concept, though few mission statements include the term. Most agencies do not post a strategic plan with an efficiency section. "Silos" interfere with cross-agency information-sharing. They were a recurring theme in interviews, and can be identified as self-imposed or external.

Engaged citizens and state employees have important roles to play in this cultural shift. Officials sometimes operate with incomplete information, creating an arbitrage between the status quo and the ideal. Our volunteers found some agencies unaware of efficiency initiatives in states in the region. Arkansans who suggest workable cost-saving ideas should be recognized for their public service.

One tip we received suggested that a state employee suggestion program was not being utilized. Agency responses to our questionnaire confirmed the tip. Current and former employees said they were unaware of the program's incentives or were fearful of offering ideas.

Some agency organizational charts are online; another tip suggested a uniform system. "My time in the Army taught me chain of command," the tipster explained. "If you don't know the structure of the chain, a person would have a hard time knowing who to contact." Half of our report's 60 recommendations address the need for a long-term shift in government culture.

Others are unique to individual agencies, and will require challenging long-held assumptions. One is that public universities should not deliver K-12 educational services, though other states encourage them to establish charter schools. Another is that "mission creep" is acceptable in terms of state spending priorities.

Scarce resources can be allocated toward fiscal goals--including preparation for the next downturn--when government does more with less. Governor Hutchinson raised efficiency as an issue, and citizen volunteers found nearly 200 initiatives. Future reviews will find a greater number if a cultural shift occurs in Little Rock.

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Greg Kaza is executive director of the Arkansas Policy Foundation, a Little Rock think tank founded in 1995. The report is at arkansaspolicyfoundation.org.

Editorial on 12/09/2016

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