Transforming Washington's Budget

Browse Ideas with tag 'effective government':

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  Economic Development »

  More communtiy service/less jail time for nonviolent offenders.

  I suggest offenders of nonviolent and less serious crimes are given a choice of massive amounts of community service or a larger sentence/fines. The less people we have in jail means less tax money. The more people we have working on community projects means a healthier community. Basically it’s counterproductive to have someone just sit in a jail cell for selling pot, while they could be heavily engaged in helping ...more »

  I suggest offenders of nonviolent and less serious crimes are given a choice of massive amounts of community service or a larger sentence/fines. The less people we have in jail means less tax money. The more people we have working on community projects means a healthier community. Basically it’s counterproductive to have someone just sit in a jail cell for selling pot, while they could be heavily engaged in helping the community..

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  22 comments for Idea: More communtiy service/less jail time for nonviolent offenders.

  Submitted by steve 2 years ago

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  31 votes

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  Economic Development »

  Decrease the cost of administration: DSHS/DDD

  Decrease the cost of administration: DSHS/DDD should stop initiating/supporting residential habilitation center closure efforts and let their superintendents do their jobs at their facilities. Each closure effort results in distraction of the superintendents and other administrators from their own responsibilities and redirects their time and energy to the Division's closure agenda. Hundreds, if not thousands, of expensive ...more »

  Decrease the cost of administration: DSHS/DDD should stop initiating/supporting residential habilitation center closure efforts and let their superintendents do their jobs at their facilities. Each closure effort results in distraction of the superintendents and other administrators from their own responsibilities and redirects their time and energy to the Division's closure agenda. Hundreds, if not thousands, of expensive hours have been wasted in this way! This creates a choice between gross inefficiencies at the facilities or hiring more administrative personnel to manage what the superintendent is unable to do.

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  7 comments for Idea: Decrease the cost of administration: DSHS/DDD

  Submitted by saskialucianow 2 years ago

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  Economic Development »

  Implement Health Savings Accounts for state employees

  To reduce both state and employee costs for healthcare coverage, implement Health Savings Accounts for state employees, as Indiana has done successfully. See http://www.in.gov/spd/2455.htm and http://is.gd/dKT7S.

  1 comment for Idea: Implement Health Savings Accounts for state employees

  Submitted by D B 2 years ago

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  12 votes

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  Effective Government »

  Three ideas to shift dollars from school bureaucracies to classrooms

  1. Save $1.47 billion by cutting education programs that can't prove they are raising student achievement: Compensatory Education, $947 million, Other Instruction $133 million, Community Service $54 million, and 25 % of Districtwide Support, $339 million. 2.Remember that 83% of school district spending is on salaries and benefits, or $8.1billion out of a total $10 billion. A ten percent salary and benefit reduction ...more »

  1. Save $1.47 billion by cutting education programs that can't prove they are raising student achievement: Compensatory Education, $947 million, Other Instruction $133 million, Community Service $54 million, and 25 % of Districtwide Support, $339 million.

  2.Remember that 83% of school district spending is on salaries and benefits, or $8.1billion out of a total $10 billion. A ten percent salary and benefit reduction would save nearly $1 billion and cost no one their job.

  3.Yet this would preserve the current system that delivers less than 59 cents of every dollar to the classroom. Requiring school districts to make 25% across the board cuts, with 15% in expenditure reductions and 10% reallocated to schools, would shift resources from bureaucracies to schools.

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  2 comments for Idea: Three ideas to shift dollars from school bureaucracies to classrooms

  Submitted by Liv Finne 2 years ago

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  Effective Government »

  eclectic laundry list from an average guy

  Require honesty and full disclosure -- especially in court -- by the AG office and all state employees when they are opposing the citizens. Start with parenting/CPS proceedings. This would shorten the proceedings immensely by not having to fight off the lies and misrepresentations and omissions of the AG and DSHS. Ask the Colville prosecutors about this. Give the police all police powers. End CPS which doesn't know ...more »

  Require honesty and full disclosure -- especially in court -- by the AG office and all state employees when they are opposing the citizens. Start with parenting/CPS proceedings. This would shorten the proceedings immensely by not having to fight

  off the lies and misrepresentations and omissions of the AG and DSHS. Ask the Colville prosecutors about this.

  Give the police all police powers. End CPS which doesn't know how to handle the power. Law enforcement needs the funds not the AG civil office.

  Require L&I to reply to claimant questions and to READ THEIR OWN FORM RESPONSES -- Require L&I to require employers to COMPLETE all their forms and require L&I to use the information available to them instead of playing a waiting game through a year or more of services and proceedings because the information is missing.

  Stop paying forensic evaluators etc. in medical and social services cases. Just pay client choice of a Dr. for a less costly visit and get the records. Use half the saved funds for real help not biased forensic "services" which are actually only services to the AG building the case.

  Stop DSHS from scheduling and mailing out (or not) all

  their frequent forms of medical renewal, etc. to clients. Just have DSHS require that a Dr. who is paid by their programs sends in records on a set schedule. Let

  the Dr. know the requirements for the program (e.g. check this person or that disease every 3 months).

  REQUIRE the state to provide or at least consider

  learning ability/disability evaluations or evidence (client can provide) in all proceedings where any form of competence is an issue or a citizen must defend

  against government action. Not limited to CPS /L&I / medical denials, but certainly a good start.

  Turn off LIGHTS and lower the heat in government buildings. Especially at night - do we really need the Capitol lit so long?

  Stop paying private out-of-state outsourced education online services. On the other hand, use the College Board tests instead of reinventing the wheel for assessment. Assessment should be nationally standardized; teaching should be local and personal.

  Stop education from competing with homeschoolers. For heaven's sake, home education is free to the state. Stop legislating more and more schooling for younger ages. It's not scientifically backed and what you have is not consistently served anyway.

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  2 comments for Idea: eclectic laundry list from an average guy

  Submitted by M Ward 2 years ago

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  Economic Development »

  Program Integraty Improvments

  Require financial workers to verify the applicant's housing costs, household composition and income. Taking their word for everything is resulting in errors that will cost the State million in lost high performance awards and economic sanctions.

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  Submitted by Debbie Cheek 2 years ago

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  Protect Health and Vulnerable People »

  Do Not Purge Site Discourse

  I suggest that discussion not be purged from this forum. To do so distorts the discussion. Even argumentative discourse is valuable and enlightening. If anyone finds it tiresome or boring, they can close out the site.

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  Submitted by saskialucianow 2 years ago

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  Effective Government »

  State employees

  Create a bottom line for state hired employees. A number that is the minimum. All other positions would be required to present documentation annually as to why they are still needed. This state is way too heavy in managers with little to do except sit at a computer. Make your managers go out in the field. They need to know the job they are supervising. They spend way too much time in unproductive meetings or reading ...more »

  Create a bottom line for state hired employees. A number that is the minimum. All other positions would be required to present documentation annually as to why they are still needed. This state is way too heavy in managers with little to do except sit at a computer. Make your managers go out in the field. They need to know the job they are supervising. They spend way too much time in unproductive meetings or reading / answering email. One day a week, email is off. Use the phone. Visit in person.

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  1 comment for Idea: State employees

  Submitted by Bob 2 years ago

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  -21 votes

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  Economic Development »

  Four Day School Week

  Millions, if not billions, of dollars could be saved by running schools on a four day system. The one day cut would be made up by extending the school day by one to one and a half hours. By the state forcing all school districts to cut one day a week out of their school schedules, huge savings would be seen by not running school buses one day a week for thirty six weeks. Other savings would be noted in the reduced cost ...more »

  Millions, if not billions, of dollars could be saved by running schools on a four day system. The one day cut would be made up by extending the school day by one to one and a half hours. By the state forcing all school districts to cut one day a week out of their school schedules, huge savings would be seen by not running school buses one day a week for thirty six weeks. Other savings would be noted in the reduced cost of electric, heating, and water bills, reduction in the cost of purchasing food would also be significant over a 36 week period times every school district in the state. Adjustments would have to be made to schedules, such as, sporting event times but, I believe the inconvenience is far out weighed by the cost savings.

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  Add your comment for Idea: Four Day School Week

  Submitted by Wayne Mooney 2 years ago

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