Behind Closed Doors – Nevada Government Seeks Their Solution
By: Doug Busselman, Executive Vice President
Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons and a bi-partisan group of legislators are talking and seeking to find an agreement for how to deal with the $900 million dollar hole in the state’s checkbook. This interaction and exchange to work out different ideas is a good thing. Holding the sessions in government’s private enclaves is not.
The working logic (or excuse – depending on your perspective) is that in order for frank exchange and candid “everything is on the table” discussions, those who we have elected need to do their job and figure out what they can compromise to accomplish. Having worked through such challenges, when they come together for the necessary special session, it won’t take much time or wasted resources to wrap up the details and move forward in carrying out “the people’s business”. Sounds kind of noble and gracious of them doesn’t it?
The last round of special sessions to address state spending shortfalls also took this approach of an inside government huddle, setting the game plan and the special session went rather quickly (only taking the time it did because of the necessity of declaring legislative conflicts). Actual votes were a fore-gone conclusion, carried out only for the formal requirement that they needed to vote, in order to make their raid official, acquiring any available source of funds they could locate.
During the 2009 Nevada Legislative Session, with the pledge by the ruling party that we were going to see transparent government now that they were in charge, the behind closed door meetings again were held to finish up on the agreements for spending and the billion tax package that was passed. Now before being taken to task on bashing only one political party, it is important to underline and emphasize that the leaders of both political parties were engaged in the behind closed door sessions and without the green-light “yes” votes by Republicans in the Senate, the tax increase would not have been possible.
There’s the argument that our elected officials gotta do what they got elected to do – and that assignment of responsibility is appropriate. However, the accountability to do what you gotta do where we can watch and listen is also part of the job. Figuring out the answer and rubber stamping the conclusion reached doesn’t give us the chance as the represented to have the input necessary to raise or frame the question(s).
This always ends up with the eventual result of “the answer” of Nevada government needing more money…because the question appears to be “what are we going to do to be able to spend more?” We really don’t know what the questions are because we don’t get invited to go behind the closed doors to hear the conversations.
Let’s bring our state’s troubles out of the closet and into the open forum of legislative hearings…we understand that it might be politically uncomfortable to have the discussions that can only seem to be possible behind closed doors, but in the end…if you can’t talk about what you’re talking about behind closed doors – maybe we need to find legislators who will let us in on the deals before they are done…
Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons and a bi-partisan group of legislators are talking and seeking to find an agreement for how to deal with the $900 million dollar hole in the state’s checkbook. This interaction and exchange to work out different ideas is a good thing. Holding the sessions in government’s private enclaves is not.
The working logic (or excuse – depending on your perspective) is that in order for frank exchange and candid “everything is on the table” discussions, those who we have elected need to do their job and figure out what they can compromise to accomplish. Having worked through such challenges, when they come together for the necessary special session, it won’t take much time or wasted resources to wrap up the details and move forward in carrying out “the people’s business”. Sounds kind of noble and gracious of them doesn’t it?
The last round of special sessions to address state spending shortfalls also took this approach of an inside government huddle, setting the game plan and the special session went rather quickly (only taking the time it did because of the necessity of declaring legislative conflicts). Actual votes were a fore-gone conclusion, carried out only for the formal requirement that they needed to vote, in order to make their raid official, acquiring any available source of funds they could locate.
During the 2009 Nevada Legislative Session, with the pledge by the ruling party that we were going to see transparent government now that they were in charge, the behind closed door meetings again were held to finish up on the agreements for spending and the billion tax package that was passed. Now before being taken to task on bashing only one political party, it is important to underline and emphasize that the leaders of both political parties were engaged in the behind closed door sessions and without the green-light “yes” votes by Republicans in the Senate, the tax increase would not have been possible.
There’s the argument that our elected officials gotta do what they got elected to do – and that assignment of responsibility is appropriate. However, the accountability to do what you gotta do where we can watch and listen is also part of the job. Figuring out the answer and rubber stamping the conclusion reached doesn’t give us the chance as the represented to have the input necessary to raise or frame the question(s).
This always ends up with the eventual result of “the answer” of Nevada government needing more money…because the question appears to be “what are we going to do to be able to spend more?” We really don’t know what the questions are because we don’t get invited to go behind the closed doors to hear the conversations.
Let’s bring our state’s troubles out of the closet and into the open forum of legislative hearings…we understand that it might be politically uncomfortable to have the discussions that can only seem to be possible behind closed doors, but in the end…if you can’t talk about what you’re talking about behind closed doors – maybe we need to find legislators who will let us in on the deals before they are done…
Posted by Doug Busselman at 1/27/2010 8:52 AM 
Categories: Nevada
Tags: Governor Jim Gibbons Open Government Nevada Legislature Nevada Budget Problems
Categories: Nevada
Tags: Governor Jim Gibbons Open Government Nevada Legislature Nevada Budget Problems
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