Summer update from Sen. Brown
While most of the state’s population is enjoying the sunny weather and finding a cool place to put their feet up, many legislators are still attending meetings. The interim committees have been formed to do the people’s work while out of the regular session.
Legislative Audit held its first meeting in June and revealed some areas for improvement in school transportation. Teachers being hired have to go through a background check while bus drivers do not. Auditors used the state database to cross reference drivers and found some drivers with criminal backgrounds.
No local schools have the problem which is good news for parents in the Flathead. These types of audits cause people nervousness, so expect some legislation in the 2015 session to address student safety issues in the future. Bus drivers are part of the safety culture of schools.
As elected chair of the interim SAVA -State Administration and Veterans Affairs Committee our duties will include review of some resolutions passed in the 2013 regular session. One will focus on the feasibility of having school elections at the same time as primary elections to save taxpayer dollars. This has always seemed a no-brainer to me though the details of scheduling more than 500 school districts in our state with precincts scattered within them will be a difficult task.
Another assignment for SAVA will be a study of the Office of Commissioner of Political Practices. HJR 1 passed last session with overwhelming support from both chambers.
We will review the process for selecting the commissioner, look at the structure and duties of the office, along with the enforcement authority it holds. This governor-appointed position has come under floodlights recently with disclosures of “dark money” tied to candidates and finger pointing on both sides of the aisle.
We hope to present some ideas to the 2015 legislature which will have a positive effect on the commissioner’s office and assure taxpayers that all of us are playing by the same rules no matter who sits at the desk.
Pension soundness for both teachers and public employees will continue to be in our perview since neither is on strong footing. A bill passed last session was supposed to make the PERS whole but was drafted with flaws. Legislators serving on the finance committee want to direct actuaries to use different numbers than past practices. The PERS Board is pushing back on the suggestion. There should be some interesting headlines in future papers as this plays out.
We will forget the legislature and interim committees while we wipe the barbecue from our chins and get ready for huckleberry treats. It won’t be too long till we hear polka music. Hope you are having a wonderful summer.
— Sen. Dee Brown, R-Coram