Capitol Comments

GOP Picks up Two Governor’s Seats

By Heather Perkins, CSG Membership Data Manager

Republicans won the two governor’s races on Tuesday’s ballot, both in states won by Democrat Barack Obama in last year’s presidential race.

Former Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell defeated Democratic state Sen. Creigh Deeds by double digits—59 percent to 41 percent—to reclaim the Virginia governor’s office for Republicans.

In New Jersey, incumbent Democrat Jon Corzine lost the governor’s office to Republican Chris Christie 49 percent to 45 percent. Christie is a former U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey. Christie’s running mate, Monmouth County Sheriff Kim Guadagno, will now become New Jersey’s first lieutenant governor.

The losses shrink the Democrats’ advantage in governor’s offices to 26 to 24.

It was a clean sweep for Republicans in Virginia, where the GOP won all three executive races on the ballot.

Toll Fellow Hilda Solis Tapped for Secretary of Labor

President-elect Barack Obama has nominated U.S. Rep. Hilda Solis of California, a 1998 Toll Fellow, to be his secretary of labor.

Solis, the daughter of immigrants, has dedicated her career to forwarding fair labor practices.  As a California state senator, Solis fought to increase the state minimum wage from $4.25 to $5.75 an hour in 1996.

“I am humbled and honored to be nominated by President-elect Barack Obama to serve as Secretary of Labor,” said Solis. “I look forward to working with President-elect Obama to reinvest in work force training, build effective pipelines to provide at-risk youth and underserved communities with sustainable skills, and support high-growth industries by training the workers they need. This includes promoting green collar jobs.”

McClintock Designated Puerto Rico Secretary of State

Puerto Rico Gov.-elect Luis FortuAo has designated Senate President Kenneth Davison McClintock, 51, as the U.S. territory's Secretary of State, the only cabinet appointment that requires the advice and consent of both houses of Puerto Rico's Legislative Assembly.

McClintock, who also will fulfill the role of lieutenant governor as secretary of state, said he is "deeply honored by the designation and the trust that Governor-elect FortuAo places in me."

McClintock is no stranger to state government.

Innovations Awards Honor Cutting-Edge State Programs

In the states innovation takes on several forms.

In Georgia, innovation is a 24-hour a day, seven-day a week hotline offering residents a way to get the mental health services they need. The Georgia Crisis and Access Line offers help for the depressed, the suicidal and those worn down from fighting a mental illness.

In Delaware, innovation takes the form of a workplace wellness program, offering state employees incentives to participate in health screenings and events such as run/walk races. DelaWELL helps nearly 68,000 state employees take charge of their health.

Those are just two of eight national Innovations Awards to be awarded by The Council of State Governments this year. Full features on each program will appear in the November/December issue of State News magazine. Tune in to special podcasts from State News editors to hear from each program.

The Innovations Awards winners featured in State News and in podcasts are:

East

• DelaWELL

• Pennsylvania Program Evaluation Research System (PERS)

 

Midwest

• Michigan Video Testimony Project

• South Dakota 24/7 Sobriety Program

 

South

• Virtual Alabama

• Georgia Crisis and Access Line

 

West

• Arizona Government University

• Washington Transportation Improvement Board Performance Dashboard

 

New Report Seeks to Transform Government

How can states deal with the rapidly changing environment in which they operate?

A new report from the IBM Center for The Business of Government offers some answers. The report, written by The Council of State Governments Senior Fellow Dr. Keon Chi before his untimely death, offers “Four Strategies to Transform State Governance.” They are:

DelaWELL Wins Innovations Award

Delaware’s DelaWELL program was one of two programs selected as CSG/ERC Innovations Awards winners. From left are Sen. Kenneth McClintock, committee chair; Jennifer Davis, director of the Office of Management and Budget in Delaware; state Rep. Debbie Hudson of Delaware; Kimberly R. Wells, deputy principal assistant, office of the director in the Delaware Office of Management; and John A. Pastor, director of international trade and development in Delaware.

Pennsylvania Program Wins Innovations Award

Pennsylvania’s Program Evaluation Research System (PERS) was one of two programs selected as CSG/ERC Innovations Awards winners. Innovations Awards Selection Committee Chair, Sen. Kenneth McClintock, left, stands with Gary Zajac, chief of Research and Evaluation for the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Planning, Research, Statistics and Grants office.

State Officials Discuss Interbranch Cooperation

By Jack Penchoff

When Michael Festa moved from the legislature to a cabinet post in the administration of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, he said “I was surprised at the level of misundersta nding of the role of the legislature in the way our government works in the states.”

Festa, who serves as secretary of the executive office of Elder Affairs in the Bay State, was one of three panelists who spoke on the obstacles that prevent better cooperation between the branches of state government during The Council of State Governments’ recent Interbranch Summit of the States in Bismarck, N.D.

Appearing on the panel with Festa were state Sen. Kevin Coughlin of Ohio and state Sen. Dan Kelly of Kentucky.

Festa’s experience as the only state Cabinet officer with executive experience wasn’t the first time he was surprised at the misunderstandings that exist between the three branches of government.

Digital Records Pose New Challenges

Digital records are presenting new challenges for state governments across the country.

The National Association of State Chief Information Officers last week released a report exploring emerging trends in electronic records management, such as new Web 2.0 collaboration tools that create e-records in transitory forms yet still document the business of government. The research brief, “Ready for the Challenge? State CIOS and Electronic Records,” also explores the vulnerability of essential e-records during disasters and a growing emphasis on transparency and accountability in state government.

Also in regard to digital records, secretaries of state are facing the challenge of posting information online while protecting personal information of citizens. Secretaries of state in more than 20 states are redacting such personal information from Uniform Commercial Code filings as part of the process. Read about that effort in the 2008 Book of the States.

Longer Days, Shorter Weeks

High gas prices have lead to shorter workweeks for some state employees.

Several states are offering more of their public employees shorter workweeks. Utah instituted the most comprehensive plan: Gov. John Huntsman Jr. ordered about 17,000 state employees to work a 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. work schedule Mondays through Thursdays. That plan will begin the first week in August.

Other states—Florida, Kentucky and South Carolina—already offered the option of a compressed workweek, while other states—including Arkansas, Michigan, New Mexico, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Vermont—are considering the addition of more state agencies to existing programs.

While shorter workweeks offer several benefits—such as traffic and emissions reduction, longer access to government services and energy conservation at state facilities—critics say the shorter weeks inconvenience the customers governments are required to serve and also burdens some state workers.

Read more about the plans at Stateline.org.