Goldsmith Joins New York City Leadership Team
| By Rebuild Government on April 30th, 2010 | No Comments  |
Congratulations to Stephen Goldsmith, the national expert on government who has been writing articles on key issues for Rebuild Government. He has taken a leave from Harvard University to become deputy mayor of New York City. We are grateful to his insights into innovation government and the “politics of the possible.” We are pleased that he will allow us to continue to get his advice.
Here’s the news coverage of his appointment:
Goldsmith, 63, will be named Deputy Mayor for Operations on Friday morning, overseeing the NYPD, FDNY, the departments of transportation and sanitation, and many other agencies responsible for vital New York services.
Kennedy School of Government, where he teaches a course called “Leading Cities.”
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Loading ...Tell the Charter Commission What You Think about Ethics
| By Rebuild Government on April 21st, 2010 | No Comments |
For that reason, we are sending out a two-part survey to get public opinion to report to the Charter Commission. The first part’s questions are based on issues we have heard to this date as well as common issues governments must deal with. The second part, which will be sent next week, will be based on your survey responses and suggestions.
As usual, we’d appreciate your forwarding this survey and encouraging everyone you know to get involved and provide inputas the charter commission deliberates on this important issue.
Click below to take the survey.
(2 votes, average: 2.50 out of 5) Loading ...Weighing in on Ethics
| By Brian Stephens on April 19th, 2010 | No Comments |
The Memphis and Shelby County Metro Charter commission recently passed their first resolution concerning an ethical code for a new government.
I say first resolution because it seems possible that it won’t be the last, because this is an issue that we know from our surveys and meetings that the public cares passionately about.
As a result, we think this issue may require more time, debate, and public input before it is resolved. The question I am asked often is, will we have strong iron-clad ethical guidelines or will we have rules that are weak with no real penalties for violation of the code, and will the elected officials have the power to change the rules?
The reality is ethical rules are tough things to put on paper. I believe it’s similar to Supreme Court Justice Stewart’s famous statement in Jacobellis v. Ohio in which he stated: I could never succeed in [defining pornography]. But I know it when I see it.” We know strong ethics rules when we see them, but it is one of those concepts that at times are difficult to explain and even more difficult to regulate.
How does one put on paper what it takes a lifetime to develop and learn? How does one describe the thoughts and training of the generations that came before us and what our parents should have taught us over years of development?
When I began thinking about this topic, I read about what many consider to be “standard ethical dilemmas.” While contemplating the problem presented, I started to notice that many of the so-called dilemmas weren’t dilemmas at all – they were just a choice between doing what is right and what benefits us personally. Some of the dilemmas dealt with more complex issues and could certainly be argued a multitude of different ways, but most dealt with issues that just seemed like tough choices. And while doing the right thing may at times be tough, the difficulty in the choice shouldn’t define it necessarily as an ethical dilemma. Instead, we should just call it what it is – a selfish choice that was against society’s ethical standards.
After all, society’s norms have always been the standard by which to judge the morality of a choice, I just don’t want society’s values to drop too much just because we are afraid to say when something is wrong. It is our responsibility as citizens in this community to explain what standards we believe are appropriate. We should be clear in our standards and then list the penalties that will not only punish offenders in a fair manner, but will also deter the improper conduct from occurring in the first place.
Now is the time in our community to answer these questions. But to do so, we must get involved, let our government know what we want and then demand that they comply. We also need to let the charter commission know what we want as well.
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...Postponed: Stephen Goldsmith Conversation for April 19
| By Rebuild Government on April 17th, 2010 | No Comments |
Stephen Goldsmith, Harvard University professor and national expert on government structure and innovation, is unable to travel to Memphis for his conversation on better government. Mr. Goldsmith was working in London, and because of the volcanic ash that has closed Western European airports, he is stranded there until the air travel resumes.
His presentation on better, more efficient, more effective government will be rescheduled as soon as possible.
If you sign up for email alerts on this website or on our Facebook page, you’ll receive a notification of the new time and date.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...You’re Invited to Hear National Government Expert Stephen Goldsmith
| By Rebuild Government on April 11th, 2010 | No Comments |
We are pleased to invite you to join Rebuild Government at 8 a.m. April 19 at the Holiday Inn at University of Memphis for coffee with Stephen Goldsmith, the Daniel Paul Professor of Government and Director of the Innovations in American Government Program at Harvard University and former Mayor of Indianapolis, will share his ideas about government reform and how government can best serve the needs of our people. Mr. Goldsmith is sharing his insights and ideas with Rebuild Government as part of its communitywide conversations.
He is an advisor to numerous mayors, private sector leaders, and presidents. We’ve asked him to help us understand how a new government could make government more innovative and more efficient, and how it can make our neighborhoods safer, our economy stronger, and our government more ethical. Mr. Goldsmith injected competition into government services in Indianapolis, reducing bureaucracy, taxes, and needless redtape to cut costs more than $400 million.
He is a provocative thinker and engaging speaker, and we hope you can join us for this special conversation with him. He also is writing special articles for Rebuild Government on key issues that need to be addressed in the new charter – law enforcement, ethics, economic development, and efficient government.
Following his presentation, he will be available to sign his books, including The Power of Social Innovation: How Civic Entrepreneurs Ignite Community Networks for Good, which shows how everyday citizens can themselves produce extraordinary social change. The book explores the levers and guiding principles used by champions of civic progress who drive new organizations, new interventions, or new policies to enhance social conditions.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Rebuild Government Exclusive: An Expert’s View of Better Crime-Fighting
| By Rebuild Government on April 9th, 2010 | No Comments |
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In our meetings all over Shelby County, we hear many exciting ideas for a new government, but on one thing, everyone agrees: the #1 issue facing our community is crime. That’s why Rebuild Government has insisted that a new government has to declare war on crime and fight criminals better and smarter. To inform our conversation, we asked well-known national expert in government innovation Stephen Goldsmith to share his thoughts and suggestions as we consider the charter.
Mr. Goldsmith is the Daniel Paul Professor of Government and the Director of the Innovations in American Government Program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He is also the Chair of the Corporation for National and Community Service, appointed by both President Bush and President Obama, and he is former mayor of Indianapolis. As a two-term mayor, he cut government spending by $400 million, cut the city bureaucracy, held the line on taxes, and eliminated numerous regulations. He has written several books on innovation in government, and earlier this month, his latest book, The Power of Social Innovation: How Civic Entrepreneurs Ignite Community Networks for Good, was released.
In his article for Rebuild Government, Mr. Goldsmith says:
“Memphis and Shelby County today have many law enforcement agencies (including corrections) overseen by four different government agencies with duplication of administrative functions and some lack of integration of specialized units. The leadership responsible for law enforcement and corrections include an elected Sheriff, a Police Director appointed by the Memphis Mayor, the County Mayor who is responsible for the corrections facility, as well as a Juvenile Judge, who is responsible for the juvenile detention facility. Reform provides an opportunity to revisit not only the most efficient way of providing a service but the most effective as well. Currently Shelby County incurs the costs of supporting overlapping services such as in the areas of information and communication technology, desktop command and control, training, back office functions (HR, finance, recruitment, etc.) and other administrative and technical support functions. Law enforcement should also be combined. Some consolidated cities put that function under the mayor to appoint the chief; others combine it all under the Sheriff. This choice is one more related to local conditions than to national policy. Regardless of where this leadership is placed the overall results of these realignments should be a safer community and in turn a higher quality of life.” To read more of Mr. Goldsmith’s insights on law enforcement, corrections, and 9-1-1, and the benefits of new thinking about law enforcement, click here.
We are proud that Mr. Goldsmith will be writing articles for us on ethics, economic development, and efficiency in government as we continue our meetings, our surveys, and our communications to make sure the public’s voice is heard as the Charter Commission makes its decisions. |
| Thanks to Our Supporters
We are grateful for the strong outpouring of support that we’ve received from our community as we engage in a historic conversation about the potential of a new government and as we make sure that the public’s voices are being heard as a new charter is written by the Metro Charter Commission.
We are particularly grateful to the more than 100 civic-minded citizens and businesses in our community who stepped forward to financially support Rebuild Government. Because of them, the people of our community are expressing their opinions in countywide meetings, surveys, blogs, and on Facebook. Rebuild Government is a 501(c) 4 nonprofit organization that complies and exceeds legal requirements and the common practices of similar nonprofit organizations in Shelby County. While it is not required, the co-chairs of Rebuild Government have voted to post all contributors’ names so we can publicly thank them for their community spirit. To see them, please click here. We hope you will join these public-spirited citizens who care enough about their community’s future to support this countywide conversation. To donate, please click here. |
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Your Opinion Counts for Democracy to Work
| By Rebuild Government on April 7th, 2010 | No Comments |
We appreciated all of you who took the time to help in this exercise in democracy and to share your opinions with the Charter Commission. The response was outstanding and the results of last week’s survey are at the end of this survey.
This week’s survey comes from the Charter Commission’s Legislative Representation task force. Yesterday, it discussed elections, term limits and age limits for the metro mayor and council. Those issues are the focus of this week’s survey.
52% for Memphis-Shelby County Metropolitan Government; 36% for Memphis Metropolitan Government, and 12% for Shelby County Metropolitan Government
53% prefers for the sheriff to manage the jai and serve legal papers, and policing should be by police director appointed by Metro Mayor; 41% preferred sheriff in charge of all law enforcement and jail and serving legal papers; 6% had no opinion
55% said the library system should be an urban service, 34% said it should be a general service, and 11% had no opinion.
More information about last week’s results are found on our Facebook page.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Commission Chair Cites 15 Things to Know About New Charter
| By Rebuild Government on April 6th, 2010 | No Comments |
Julie Ellis, chair of the Memphis/Shelby County Metro Charter Commission, today spoke to Memphis Rotary about the work and the ambitions of her and her colleagues in writing a charter for a new government. In a positive, enthusiastic presentation, she traced the way that the Charter Commission is building the most modern, innovative local government in the U.S.
To illustrate the philosophy and approach of the Charter Commission, Mrs. Ellis handed out 15 things “everyone should know” about the Commission:
1. The Charter will require mandatory cross-Metro strategic planning, business plan development with strong accounting and auditing, as well as the Malcolm Baldridge Quality Award, Dow Jones Sustainability Index, and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) assessment criteria which focus government to address environmental, financial and social sustainability and customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, transparent processes and metrics, and agility within the organization to enable managing for innovation by moving people and programs.
2. The Charter, by eliminating redundant government systems, will reduce cost. We know that our two combined governments are larger in budgets and numbers of personnel than any of our benchmark cities. Memphis and Shelby County have 14,792 employees with a $1.701 billion budget. We have over 50% more employees than Indianapolis, Louisville and Nashville and 40% more than Jacksonville. Nashville operates a $1.542 billion budget with only 6,579 employees. The Commission is considering capping the number of current employees and our budget.
3. The Charter will not affect the two school systems, but will require funding of both systems pursuant to state law.
4. The Charter will not change, alter or limit the municipal powers of the six cities of Germantown, Collierville, Bartlett, Millington, Arlington and Lakeland, unlike Nashville.
5. The Charter will provide for a Legislative Branch of government designed to put representatives back into communities. The six suburban cities will be represented and will have greater representation than they do today on the County Commission.
6. The Charter will require transparent financial debt and revenue processes by which the citizens of Shelby County should be assured that their taxes will not increase, and the Commission is exploring a super majority being required for the Council to address any tax increase and we will address capping County taxes in the Charter.
7. The Charter will have a strong Ethics Code to deter corruption and enhance accountability. Neither the City, nor the County, has an Ethics Code in their Charter.
8. The Charter is requiring Annual Reports by Departments and Agencies of Government, s to the Citizens, and all Metro will be subject to an Inspector General.
9. The Charter cannot impact any state shared revenue flowing to any municipality in Shelby County.
10. The Charter will consolidate the two City Courts and look for efficiencies.
11. The Commission is considering requiring that any Annexation be allowed only if approved by the people being Annexed by referendum.
12. The Charter will address Public Safety by eliminating two competing systems to address law enforcement, operation of the jails and the courts, not to mention two motor pools and duplicate administrative costs. Better training means successful prosecutions.
13. The City Council of Memphis goes away!
14. The County Commission of Memphis goes away!
15. We will have one Mayor! One Council!
Please send any questions and suggestions! We value your input!
Julie Ellis – Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens & Cannada, PLLC – julie.ellis@butlersnow.com
(2 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5) Loading ...
