A bill that makes state government agencies more accountable to the public passed the Senate Monday. Proponents of Senate Bill 165 say the legislature’s greatest responsibility is appropriations, and legislators should be able to show constituents the results from investing money in certain areas. They note steps the executive branch is taking to monitor performance, but say the legislature also needs oversight. Senator Mike Vehle says it’s important to institutionalize the expectations so government leaders in the future are always examining goals.
“That’s what this is about—finding those things that are performance indicators to get us to the goal we want to go. When these agencies appear before, whether it’s GOAC or Appropriations committee, these are the first things we look at. Are we getting to where your goal says you want to be? Then we can judge on that, and say we better be looking at something different. And then the policy committees can say, ‘Boy, I don’t think this is working. We need to do something different,’” Vehle says.
Opponents argue whether this legislation is needed, as some agency functions can’t be quantified by performance measures. Senate Bill 165 heads to the House for consideration on a vote of 30 to 4.