The Fourth of July, with its attendant parades, fireworks and barbecues, has come and gone. School is out for the summer, which has now officially begun – though with the endless rain we’ve been experiencing, it hardly feels like it. And the Maine Legislature – more than two weeks after it was supposed to have adjourned – carried on working until last Thursday night.
This wasn’t simply inconvenient for legislators, who may have made vacation plans or have other jobs to return to: It was also a ridiculous waste of time and money. Every single extra day the Legislature was in session cost Maine taxpayers more than $44,000.
The inability of Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross and Senate President Troy Jackson to finish up their work on time shows what little regard they have for ordinary taxpayers.
It’s not simply a matter of there being a lot of legislation to consider, either: They didn’t manage the session well. During the debate on the abortion bill, for instance, legislators were left standing around for four hours while Democratic leadership wrangled votes. Setting the underlying issue aside for a moment, that’s simply not good administration. Democrats could have insisted that every single member of their caucus be there and be ready to vote ahead of time, avoiding the last-minute scramble and accompanying waste of time entirely. They also could have planned and managed the entire debate better, scheduling it earlier in the session to give themselves plenty of time to consider the contentious issue. Instead, they dilly-dallied: the public hearing was held May 1, but the work session wasn’t held until early June, and the final committee vote wasn’t until June 22.
Although the practice of waiting until the last minute to vote on controversial bills is nothing new in Augusta, it seems to get worse every session, and there’s often little reason for it. Indeed, this is the very opposite of how the work flow ought to be handled: The most controversial legislation should be dispensed with early in the session, rather than waiting until adjournment nears to rush everything through.
There’s no practical reason why the legislative session couldn’t be scheduled this way. The reasons to wait are political rather than practical. Holding up legislation to the last moment puts the pressure on lawmakers in the majority to rush through the process, minimizing input from fellow lawmakers and the public alike. That has the unfortunate effect of stifling the debate, though, by making lawmakers less willing to consider amendments on the floor. Scheduling votes with little advance notice in the waning days of session also makes it harder for opponents to organize, which makes life easier for the majority party but also makes the entire process less democratic.
Unfortunately, the legislative process itself isn’t one that gets much attention outside the halls of the State House, but it ought to be highlighted more. While the average voter might not know much about it, the administration of the Legislature is an important part of how our state government functions. At the federal level, conservatives have often highlighted this, pointing out how poorly Democrats manage Congress when in the majority and making pledges to do things differently should they take charge. They’ve had varying degrees of success at following through on those promises, of course, but at least they’ve raised the issue. Republicans ought to at least try to do the same here in Maine.
Apart from simple scheduling, the Democrats’ recently discovered “baseline budget” trick also extends the session, since it relieves legislators of the pressure to pass a budget by July 1 and avoid a shutdown. Rather than being an example of responsible governance, it’s the opposite, since it frees up the Legislature to spin their wheels later on. That’s one of the many reasons Republicans should have responded much more forcefully when the Democrats pushed through their majority budgets, instead of simply shrugging their shoulders.
The mismanagement of the legislative calendar isn’t just an arcane process issue, it’s representative of how Democrats run state government. Every year, they increase its size, while seldom looking for ways to reduce spending or increase efficiencies. That’s frustrating enough, but at least it’s a legitimate policy debate, rather than an example of maladministration.
Regardless of which party is in the majority, the people of Maine deserve a Legislature that functions smoothly and spends their time wisely. That should be a bare minimum standard for either party to pursue, not some lofty goal ignored by all.
Jim Fossel, a conservative activist from Gardiner, worked for Sen. Susan Collins. He can be contacted at:
jwfossel@gmail.com
Twitter: @jimfossel
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