Posted by
John R. LaPlante on Wednesday, August 02, 2006 4:13:28 PM
Since governments, unlike businesses, cannot face the ultimate discipline imposed on a private business—being sent OUT of business—independent oversight is crucial.
In recent years, more attention has been paid to measuring the effectiveness of government programs. Financial audits are important, but performance audits are vital. There’s little since in pouring taxpayer funds into a squeaky-clean but ineffective program.
John Barnes, a research analyst for the Seattle-based Washington Policy Center, says that thanks to a ballot initiative enacted last year, state taxpayers local and state agencies will be receiving some much-needed scrutiny. In a commentary on the measure, he admits that audits are “the stuff yawns are made of.”
And yet, “the potential for savings and streamlining is great.” Who knows? The taxpayer will save money from government cutting out needlessly costly ways of running things. The audits may also show some programs so ineffective that they ought to be abolished outright.
The initiative, called I-900, dictates that the largest agencies get audited first. Brian Sonntag, the state auditor, calls the effort “the most ambitious program of its type in the nation.”
If you’d like to mine the auditing effort for insights that might be applied in your own state, the Washington Policy offers Reviewing Government through Performance Audits: A Guide to Initiative 900.