Issue Position: Effective Government

Issue Position

Government seems to devolve to the lowest common denominator.

This is true regardless of the Party that has controlled a State sometimes. It is certainly true in many cases I could cite, but I will refrain to prevent too much partisanship.

Instead I would like to point out how our State is having problems, and how we can effectively fix those problems. By problems in herew I mean with our Safety Net programs and our spending in general.

One program I was able to witness first hand in Washington County was the demonstration of why Not For Profits and Businesses are more effective than Government. The specific Not for Profit program I was in was called Bridges to Change. I had been scammed successfully (I thought I had signed a lease agreement that went to landlord, paid a month and half of rent money, and set out looking for work) and lost most everything.

The housing program they ran (Homeless to Housing) was run in an ideal manner with a fixed time duration. Tools for success were obtained, maximum usage of volunteers was done, group sessions, monitoring of the participants was done at a very ideal level, and so forth. This contrasts to other programs I have seen (as security and in other fashions) where success is an accidental byproduct that happens rarely. The difference in cost is staggering as well.

I highlight them because they run an effective NFP that does a service for a Government Entity. We can find ways to do things better, smarter, and indeed cheaper.

My proposal is simple: Keep the same amount of assistance reaching those the program was designed to help while increasing efficiency and reducing cost. I am a realist. My district will never vote in someone who will cut social programs. This is North Portland. So the number one rule is not to cut, but to fix the damage and reduce the bad effects.

And there is much room for fixing things.

One method I am going to use is known as "Crowd Sourcing". Crowd Sourcing is where you ask people other than just experts to help find answers to a problem. Well there is 50 States, hundreds of Counties, hundreds of Cities, and who knows how many towns. Effective programs exist! I have seen proof that costs can be reduced, that effectiveness can increase, and we can utilize the best of the best for our State, our Communities.

Not all programs work as well in different regions of course, that is why we need to look them over after obtaining the information. However getting the best plans together would break the ice, and give us a chance to make things WORK!

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