Reform and Streamline: What does it mean?

The new legislature has been in for a week and the bills are starting to be introduced.  By the end of the biennial session there will be thousands of proposals before the lawmakers.

A number of those proposals will be presented to "reform" or "streamline" a government agency or department and their activities.  What does that mean?

Reform and streamline are the buzz words from both political parties for emphasis in some legislation.  New Senate and House leaders have proposed to "streamline" the permit processes for the business environment, for example. Under the name of "reform" it has been discussed to do away with print notices of public meetings and government activities in newspapers and do it only on the internet. These are just a couple of the many ideas that that the legislature will deal with.

To understand the consequences and implications of "reform/streamline" named bills, the Chief Author of the bill needs to be direct and upfront in their presentations in the committee hearing as to what their bill will do and what the problem the legislation is trying to fix.

Many of our processes, regulations, and laws have been put in place to protect people's rights, health, and safety.  As legislation comes forward to be change for the better or for government to be more efficient there needs to be evidence and documentation that our health, safety, and rights are not compromised.