Government reform hot topic at Rotary

Valley Press ^ | on Saturday, August 28, 2004. | LISA WAHLA HOWARD

[BenLurkin]

After helping create California's highly anticipated government reform plan, George Passantino now is spreading the word about the plan at the grassroots level. For Passantino, a Palmdale resident, that includes a stop Tuesday at the Palmdale Rotary Club meeting, where he will explain the recommendations of the California Performance Review, or CPR. Passantino was a director for the CPR, which was organized by Arnold Schwarzenegger, who promised to dramatically reform the state's government.

The CPR proposed thousands of ways to streamline the state bureaucracy, including dissolving hundreds of boards and commissions with highly paid appointees. The plan could save the state $32 billion over five years if enacted, but many of the provisions face strong opposition from those who favor keeping things as they are.

That's where the public comes in.

"I understand that a lot of the public supports the move to reform government, and that makes it all the more viable in Sacramento," Passantino said. "There's the saying in Sacramento that they don't see the light until they feel the heat - the public is a very powerful force."

Passantino, who works for the Reason Foundation, a public policy research firm, has been busy speaking around the state and writing newspaper columns on the CPR's findings.

"In many ways it's a tale of two worlds," Passantino said. "You go out and talk to folks on Main Street, and they're very enthusiastic about it. There's the general sense that there are lots of things that could be done differently in Sacramento to save money.

"That's a different reaction, obviously, than what you get from the people who've been working in the system. I think the folks that would like to see the status quo are very vocal."

Passantino's official duties with the CPR have ended, but his role with the Reason Foundation allows him to continue promoting the reform plan. The CPR is now collecting public input on the plan at hearings around the state. One hearing will take place in Los Angeles on Sept. 9 at the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum, and another is scheduled for Sept. 10 at California State University, Long Beach.

"We want to see as broad a turnout as possible," Passantino said. "Part of this effort is to bring the government to the people instead of assuming people should come to the government."

The Rotary lunch begins at 12:15 p.m. at the Palmdale Sizzler, 853 West Palmdale Blvd.