12/19/97

Budget rosy now, red later

Another one-half percent pay raise for state employees announced this week will swallow another $15 million of a $42 million of a projected state government surplus for the current fiscal year (NewSource 12/17). The Legislature had authorized the extra half percent (on top of 1.5 percent previously approved, for a 2 percent total this fiscal year) subject to the money being available. Also, in closing the books on the last fiscal year (96-97), budget folks figure another $62 million is left over... though much of that is spoken for as well. Of the total, $30 million came from a one-time payment by AT&T to settle a long-running tax dispute... and that same amount is earmarked for holding in a special "trust fund" for the coming fiscal (re-election) year. The pre-election ritual of scaring up money for special projects (pork) is underway. The $30 million "trust fund," for example, is likely to wind up being used for such things when Legislators get into a wind-down mode next April.

Clouds on the horizon

While the short term looks pretty good, caution flags have been waved by economists making a study of the state's tax and spending system. Most notable was a study by Dr. Hal Hovey, president of State Policy Research Inc., who found Tennessee's budget has a built-in "structural deficit" that is worse than virtually all other states. (The four below Tennessee don't have to worry so much for various reasons -- Alaska and Wyoming, for example, get big bucks from oil royalty payments.) The upshot is that Hovey calculates Tennessee state and local taxes will have to be increased by 9 percent over the next seven years -- or spending cut by that amount -- according to his best scenario. Another projection, using different assumptions about the economy and federal spending, pegged the "structural deficit" at 14.5 percent -- or slightly over 2 percent per year.Sundquist and lawmakers best enjoy spending while they can in the 1998 election year. Grimmer times are coming.

Ivey-deal political appointment

President Clinton may have a penchant for nominating liberal activist types to controversial government positions. But he's not showing it with his selection of Bill Ivey to become the next head of that ultimate conservative bete-noir, the National Endowment of the Arts. Ivey, executive director of the Country Music Foundation in Nashville, is best known outside Nashville for supporting the preservation of historic musical recordings. A musicologist and folklorist by training, he is widely respected. Political enemies of the NEA, many of them Southern conservatives, will find little to quarrel about here. A respectable, uncontroversial national arts leader from Tennessee would be a nice thing to have if you were Vice President / president-in-waiting Al Gore. Despite steep cutbacks in federal funding, the NEA still manages to help selected arts organizations -- like the Nashville Symphony, which just received a $30,000 NEA grant.

12/18/97

Statewide zoning may be in works

Now that the "tiny towns" legislative fiasco has focused public attention on the struggle between cities and counties for the tax dollars of residents, a legislative committee is drafting what could become a state-driven zoning plan. The proposal calls for setting up a statewide network of land use planning forcing city and county governments to negotiate long-term land-use plans. There would be a moratorium on forming new cities while those plans are developed. Cities would be limited in taking taxes from counties through annexation. Members of the Legislature's Ad Hoc Committee on Annexation and Incorporation have voted to use the proposal as a "framework" for legislation to be considered next year. The proposal is likely to be construed as the equivalent of statewide zoning... a radical notion in a state that is politically tuned to individual property rights. Not good news for small, affluent communities who want to keep their tax dollars close to home.

Frist (the senator) cleared for Medicare Commission

Some have questioned whether Sen. Bill Frist, owner of a multi-million dollar chunk of Columbia/HCA stock and brother to the fellow running it, has a conflict of interest in serving on the federal Medicare Commission. The commission will be recommending ways to change Medicare and Columbia/HCA gets a lot of Medicare money -- more than it should have, according to the FBI. The Senate Ethics Committee, in a letter obtained by The Chattanooga Times, says there's not a conflict... but Frist should be cautious. Wrote Ethics Committee Director Victor Baird to the senator: "Concerns about creating the appearance of a conflict of interest will, nonetheless, need to be evaluated in determining whether, and to what extent, you wish to aid the progress or passage of any particular legislation." For his part, Frist says everybody knows about his interests and family ties... so there's not a problem. For starters, he says business has become a forbidden subject for discussion at family gatherings that involve himself and brother Thomas Frist Jr., Columbia's chairman and CEO. Frist would have to be stupid to blatantly favor Columbia/HCA as a commission member. And he's correct in saying his knowledge of health care gives him a leg up in understanding the issues. But conflicts of interest are often a matter of perception and his participation on the commission won't improve the public's plummeting opinion of health care.

12/17/97

Year-end tax shuffle?

After a year in which state budget officials have repeatedly warned of shortfalls and the need to cut the state payroll, the Sundquist administration has produced some holiday cheer. Tax collection windfalls from the 1997 fiscal year, which ended June 30, plus a "predicted" windfall for the current '98 fiscal year, mean $90 million in unexpected revenue. The extra money comes just in time for Sundquist's '99 budget, which he will announce in February. And just in time for election year, too. The trouble with windfalls is everybody wants some of the pie. In $15 billion budget, $90 million is only a half-percent -- an economic blip in our sales-tax driven state economy.

City-county battle lines are drawn

Over a 10-year period, city governments across the state would lose $1.7 billion for general purpose spending and local school systems would gain that amount under a plan for changing the state's system for splitting up tax money between local governments. The estimate comes from the Tennessee Municipal League, which is vigorously fighting the revisionist plan from the Tennessee County Services Association. The county plan basically calls for putting a freeze on the city share of the sales tax, the beer tax and the Hall Income Tax on dividends and interest... then turning over the future revenue growth to education. As things stand now, counties contend cities are stealing the revenue from situs-based taxes -- sometimes by annexation, sometimes by tradition. (Belle Meade, located within Metro Nashville but with city coffers waxing fat from situs-based taxes, is often cited as an example.) A legislative committee heard a formal presentation of the plan on Tuesday, with initial reaction split along urban-rural lines. Counties contend they're being forced to raise property taxes because of the present setup... cities say they'll have to raise them if the proposal is enacted.The idea seems to be getting some serious attention, but it may wind up being used as a bargaining chip by counties when, and if, legislators drag the warring factions to the table for a compromise deal. Some key lawmakers -- Sen. Bob Rochelle, D-Lebanon, for example -- are openly urging some deal be worked out and both sides say they're willing to talk with everything from "tiny towns" to taxes on the table.

12/16/97

Indians, Country Music and Politics Mix

There's been a lot of activity lately out at Mound Bottoms, a state-owned historical area in Cheatham County where prehistoric folks had a city 1,500 years or so ago and built huge mounds that remain as their only legacy. If state Rep. Mike Williams (D-Franklin), some Native American leaders and a smattering of country music types have their way, it may become scene of a lot more activity. The plan is to re-bury the remains of around 400 deceased Indians who have been unearthed from their supposed final resting place over the last century by various building projects, then left in the care of the state archeologist. Last weekend, Williams joined Native Americans and country music personalities led by Mike Collie out to the site where they hope to establish a "re-interment center" for the dislocated deceased. Tommy Two Hawks and other Indian leaders held ceremonies and Williams thinks signs are now right for building a visitors center -- next to the proposed re-interment center on state-donated land. Country music celebrities and Native American groups would raise money for construction and maintenance. Williams says his only misgiving was that an Indian leader, peering into the sky after a singing-chanting ceremony, misidentified a buzzard as an eagle. The mix of music celebrities (several besides Collie have expressed interest but await publicist advice) and a Native American cause raises the prospect of a new tourist Mecca on the Music City regional scene with appeal to both the politically correct and historically conscious. The bandwagon will start rolling later this year.

Supremes Split Again... and Again

In two opinions issued Monday, state Supreme Court justices split 3-2 in criminal cases along the same lines as in a recent death penalty decision. One was a death penalty case, called Steve Henley vs. State, which involved a defendant who shot an elderly couple several times, then set their house on fire. The husband died of gunshot wounds; the wife of burns. The central appeal issue was whether Henley had a competent lawyer; the Court of Criminal Appeals said he did not and reversed the death sentence. Supreme Court Justices Riley Anderson, Frank Drowota and Janice Holder formed a majority in overturning the appeals court decision and saying that the lawyer was good enough. Justices Lyle Reid and Aldolpho Birch dissented -- in part because the lawyer advised Henley's mother and other family members not to plead for his life at the sentencing hearing. In the other case, called State vs. Ricky Michael Dixon, the defendant was convicted of kidnapping, aggravated assault and attempted sexual battery after dragging a woman 40 feet into bushes to attack her. The same three-judge majority held that all three convictions were proper and again overturned a Court of Criminal Appeals decision. The same dissenters said no, the kidnapping was "incidental" to the other crimes and the conviction should be vacated.More evidence that the Supreme majority is ready to aggressively stake out tough-on-crime turf, overturning lower court justices who are also subject to the 1998 yes-no referendum. With Reid fleeing the scene through retirement, Birch is ever more isolated if anti-crime activists decide to go after him in the election.

12/15/97

Thompson not going quietly into the night

Sen. Fred Thompson's campaign finance hearings may be over, but he is expected to fire a final salvo this week in the form of a letter asking Attorney General Janet Reno to pursue perjury charges against three top Democratic officials, based on conflicts in their testimony before the Thompson committee. The alleged perjurers: Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Harold Ickes, and former Democratic National Committee chairman Don Fowler. Thompson floated this idea over a week ago, and political consultants / spouses Mary Matalin and James Carville batted the idea back and forth on Meet the Press Sunday. Though indictments are unlikely, a letter will keep Reno on the hot seat, and may generate some more business for Nashville attorney Jim Neal -- word is he'll represent Fowler if the matter proceeds.

Memphis to sell, privatize utility service?

If the state can talk about privatizing prisons and the feds talk about selling TVA, why can't a city privatize its utility services and make money to boot? That's the question posed in Memphis by Mayor Willie Herenton, who has touched off something of an uproar by urging a formal city study into the sale of Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division. Herenton suggests that somewhere between $600 million and $800 million could be realized by selling off the utility services... with those savings going toward tax reductions or wiping out most city debts. His comments come after an analysis of the possibilities by Morgan Keegan & Co. Inc., a firm that happens to employ the mayor's son, Rodney Herenton, as vice president of investment banking, and which could realize about $10 million by handling such a deal. The mayor says his son's position is irrelevant -- comparing it to sending city packages through Federal Express, which employs another of his sons. Critics contend higher electric and water bills could follow privatization and a poll by The Commercial Appeal indicates 74 percent of Memphians don't like the idea. Herenton, rated the favorite for re-election next year, is venturing out on a limb that is subject to considerable shaking in political winds. The idea isn't likely to fly anytime soon and, in the meantime, could help get other candidates airborne. (Former Congressman Harold Ford Sr. is a prospect.) Don't expect other mayors to follow Herenton's lead.

Sundquist going for Big Orange vote?

Gov. Don Sundquist has been accused of pandering to farmers by going to a Farm Bureau convention last week and pledging to get them a new tax break despite state budget problems (NewSource, 12/10, Tennessean, 12/14)... then he declared that he hopes to be able to execute a criminal during his second term, positioning himself for a charge of pandering to capital punishment advocates (if anyone would make it). Over the weekend, the governor found a new button to push for popularity among perhaps an even bigger Tennessee voting bloc. Asked his reaction to the failure of Peyton Manning to win the Heisman Trophy, Sundquist said: "I think it stinks." He went on to declare that Vol quarterback's loss shows the Heisman voting deck is stacked to make it nothing more than "a regional award" with a bias against Southerners. The governor may still have no position on controversial issues, but is ever bolder in standing up for the state's most popular causes.

Gore blames it on The Tennessean

Being vice president means never having to say you're sorry, especially if you can blame it on The Tennessean. First, Time magazine reported Vice President Al Gore last week as claiming he and his wife Tipper were models for the lead characters in Erich Segal's hit 1970s tear-jerker, "Love Story." Then Segal partially denied it in the Sunday New York Times, saying the romantic, athletic aspects of the Oliver Barrett IV character were based on Gore's Harvard roommate, actor Tommy Lee Jones, (only the high-bred, high-expectations aspects were from Gore) and Tipper wasn't in the story at all. Gore's explanation, according to Segal, was that a Tennessean reporter had exaggerated the connection years ago when the movie came out. And he was chatting about that newspaper report, not the truth, when a Time reporter misconstrued the matter: (NY Times, 12/14) "Al attributed it to the newspaper, he talked about the newspaper... They conveniently omitted that part," Segal said. The Tennessean carried part of the Times story Sunday (12/14), though not this line: "An article that the famously wooden vice president was the model for a romantic hero might have cast Gore in a softer light as he approaches an anticipated run for the presidency in 2000."
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12/12/97

Elected officials do the right thing

Man bites dog? It is heartening to see our elected representatives catch a political appointee pulling a fast one on business -- and call him on it. State Commissioner of Commerce and Insurance Douglas Sizemore, in a move that was supposed to be good news for business owners, announced a 7 percent cut in workers compensation insurance premium rates for 1998 effective March 1. An aide to Sizemore outlined the plan to the Legislature's Joint Committee on Workers Compensation in glowing terms, doubtless anticipating applause for the rate cut. But lawmakers quickly noted that many workers' comp policies -- mandated by state law for virtually all businesses -- are renewed in January, with rate changes effective Jan. 1. Businesses would lose the rate cut in 1998, and perhaps forever if there's a rate increase next year. (The insurance commissioner sets rates annually and until this year -- after a reform law was approved in 1996 -- there has been a long history of annual increases.) The 7 percent decrease was already a compromise, with an advisory council recommending a 10 percent cutback versus just a 3.4 percent reduction recommended by the industry-dominated National Council on Compensation Insurance. The co-chairmen of the committee, Rep. Matt Kisber (D-Jackson) and Sen. Bud Gilbert (R-Knoxville) joined other lawmakers in a bipartisan outcry. Meanwhile, Brian McGuire of Tennessee Citizen Action charged that the plan amounted to "an early Christmas gift to Sizemore's cronies in the insurance industry." (Sizemore, who owned a Johnson City insurance agency before his appointment by Gov. Don Sundquist, has in the past been accused of cozinesss with the industry -- most prominently in a Money magazine feature story two years ago.) The Workers' Comp Committee, one of the Legislature's most remarkable success stories, has stopped a deal that could have given insurance companies a big financial break. Kisber and Gilbert want a guarantee that the companies losing the rate cut in 1998 will be sure to receive it in 1999 and the chagrined Sizemore is likely to agree.

Soccer moms with balls?

A Shelby County couple, leaders in efforts to incorporate one of 10 proposed new cities on the outskirts of Memphis under the now-defunct "tiny towns" law, have come up with a new tactic. Tom and Denise Jeanette have founded a new, statewide lobbying organization they call the Tennessee Suburban League. That's a takeoff, of course, on the Tennessee Municipal League that they consider an arch-enemy as representative of 347 existing cities. Denise Jeanette says that cities have the TML, counties have the County Services Association and farmers have the Tennessee Farm Bureau... but surburanites have no one lobbying for them in Nashville. Tom Jeanette is an unsuccessful Republican candidate for Congress in the 9th District seat now held by Democratic Rep. Harold Ford Jr. The couple, who charge dues of $35 per person for individual membership in the TSL with group rates for organizations, say they're lining up supporters throughout the state. The simple existence of another faction in the emotional and evolving fight over powers of local government may tend to benefit the status quo under divide-and-conquer scenarios -- and the present TML is commander of the status quo. On the other hand, if the opposition, including TSL, chooses to unite on a few target areas -- say, new restrictions on city annexation power -- things start to look different.

12/11/97

Attorney general can save us the grief

State Sen. Bud Gilbert has proposed that the 1998 state Legislature mandate "anti-pornography software blocks" on all computers owned by state and local governments in Tennessee. That would include those at public libraries, universities, public schools and, of course, those used by government bureaucrats. Says Gilbert: "It's a matter of making sure our libraries and schools are not used as conveyors of that kind of smut." As for bureaucrats, the Knoxville Republican says he's heard talk of productivity decreasing in some state government offices and wonders if porno viewing might be a factor. The American Civil Liberties Union says it will fight the bill, believing it unconstitutional... and officials of some universities and libraries are expressing unease about the bill setting a precedent. Gilbert says he may use state computers to demonstrate what sort of porn is out there.An Internet porno show at the Legislative Plaza will trigger much media interest and controversy. And in the end, legislators will be hard pressed to vote against an anti-pornography bill in an election year... unless Attorney General John Knox Walkup issues an advance opinion saying it is unconstitutional, saving everyone a lot of time and legal expense.

Supremes soften "Truth in Captioning" standard

Sometimes fewer words are better than many. The state Supreme Court, which struck down the controversial "tiny towns" law with a one-paragraph decision last month (NewSource, 11/26), followed up with a full-length opinion on Wednesday. The initial order appeared to show the high court was getting tough on "caption bills" -- those where the title or "caption" of a bill says one thing, but the body does something else after an amendment. The full opinion, however, appears to water down the impact. The full opinion focuses on the use of the phrase "relative to" in the bill, saying it made the bill overly broad.The political fallout over the backfire of the back-door tiny towns bill should rightfully make lawmakers think twice about abuseing the the caption bill tactic in the near future. But in the long term, the Supremes have left open a legal path leading away back into the thicket of legislation by ambush.

12/10/97

'Big Four' mayors form lobbying team

For the first time in at least a decade, the mayors of Tennessee's four largest cities got together and went lobbying Tuesday. Mayors Phil Bredesen of Nashville, Willie Herenton of Memphis, Victor Ashe of Knoxville and Jon Kinsey of Chattanooga presented the united front in meetings with Gov. Don Sundquist and, later, with Lt. Gov. John Wilder and House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh. Mass transit money was the priority item on their first agenda. Federal funding of public bus systems has been slashed in recent years and the mayors say Tennessee's state government subsidies for mass transit runs well below the national average for other states. About $12 million in new state funds would be needed to match the average, they say. The mayors proposed a couple of ways the state could come up with the bucks: (1) Channel future growth in gas tax revenues away from road-building and into mass transit, (2) Reallocate federal funds received through special transportation programs away from other projects. The mayors say that Sundquist, Wilder and Naifeh were all receptive, but non-committal on mass transit and other matters. They also say they now plan periodic meetings of the big four mayors... and future joint lobbying expeditions. Though the mayors wouldn't say so publicly, the urban union indicates some unhappiness with the Tennessee Municipal League, which represents 343 smaller towns and cities as well as the big four... and that may be the prod that got the four mayors together.

New tax break to farmers?

Gov. Don Sundquist told the Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation Monday that he'll push to give them a new tax break in the 1998 legislative session. The plan is to eliminate sales taxes on repairs of farm equipment. Estimates are that it'll cost the state about $1.9 million in lost revenue while local governments will lose another $700,000 or so. Sundquist said it's only fair, since manufacturers now have an exemption from the sales tax when they get their equipment fixed (though, of course, average folks must pay the sales tax when taking their car in for repairs). The assembled farmers gave Sundquist a standing ovation. The Farm Bureau is one of the state's most powerful interest groups and, in an election year, the tax break is virtually certain to sail through the Legislature. That's so even though fiscally wise folks such as former Finance Commissioner Bob Corker have urged repealing many of the existing tax exemptions... not adding to them. While the governor was making his pledge, a special commission was reporting state taxes once again will fall short of expenses... Sundquist promised earlier to seek the new tax break, but got the farm folk to go along with postponing it until 1998... so he's apparently fullfiling a commitment made back when he thought a credible Democrat might run against him.

Hopeful executioner

"I hope so. I hope it happens on my watch. I think it will." -- Sundquist, asked by a reporter on Tuesday whether he thinks Tennessee will actually send someone to the electric chair for execution during his term as governor.

12/9/97

Lamar agenda up in Iowa, down in Tennessee?

Lamar Alexander and Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad were upbeat about Alexander's presidential prospects in the Hawkeye state at a Nashville news conference Monday. Branstad, recently named to head Alexander's political action committee, lavished praise on the former Tennessee governor and was apparently more candid than in Iowa about the 2000 campaign. Said he: "I think it's very likely he will become a candidate. It's very likely that I will be actively involved in his campaign." He said Alexander is building on his base from 1996 (when he finished third) and attracting interest "person by person" among former supporters of Bob Dole. Ted Welch, Alexander's chief fundraiser, was on hand to predict "we'll be considerably north of $2 million" in collecting funds for the Lamar PAC... which will give money to GOP candidates and encourage them to stress education as an issue. On the other hand, the status of a couple of pet education agenda items in Tennessee -- merit pay for teachers and so-called "charter schools" -- provided a bit of a downer. Alexander said he was disappointed that the Tennessee Legislature voted earlier this year to freeze the "Career Ladder" merit pay program he set up as governor -- meaning no new teachers can qualify, though those already on board continue to get the supplments. He said Gov. Don Sundquist has assured him that improvements will be pushed and declared "it would be a shame... if we fell to the back of the line just as everybody else is starting to do it (launch merit pay plans)." Ditto for charter schools, which are getting a cold shoulder from legislators despite new Sundquist support. "Again, it would be astonishing to me if Tennessee wanted to drag the bottom of the line," said Alexander.A fellow making education his forte as a presidential candidate could be embarrassed that the legacy he brags about is being dismantled... and that an initiative he supports is a flop in his home state. Having endured what Alexander called "completely false" attack ads aimed at his gubernatorial record in 1996 (Bob Dole ads depicted him as a "tax and spend liberal"), he is uneasy about any new ammunition. Sundquist may respond to his prodding for action on pet education projects, but the Democratic majority in the Legislature is another matter.

Quotation and notation department

"I just appreciate Mr. Burnett bringing it to my attention so we could get it rectified." State Rep. Matt Kisber, D-Jackson, treasurer of the House-Democratic Caucus, gloating over the Registry of Election Finance's decision Monday to dismiss civil charges against the PAC for filing a financial disclosure report late. State GOP Chairman Jim Burnett had issued a news release contending the Democrats were trying to hide questionable contributions from the public... though Kisber says the Registry staff apparently misfiled the report after getting it on time.

Why Wamp sounds like a Democrat ?

Rep. Zach Wamp is the first of Tennessee's Republican U.S. House members to publicly grumble about his GOP leaders' posture on campaign finance reform. In a speech to Chattanooga Republicans, Wamp declared himself "very disappointed" in the party's congressional leaders and then told reporters he suspects the leadership is too comfortable with the status quo to do any significant reform. That, he said, amounts to "negligence." He contrasted the present status to Democrat action in 1974 "when Nixon was on the ropes" and the congressional majority pushed through a wave of campaign finance laws that mostly remain unchanged today. Said Wamp: "They didn't just hold hearings and go home." Though Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and House Speaker Newt Gingrich have talked about bringing the issue to the floor in February or March, Wamp indicated skepticism: "When I see that they're willing to compromise and reach some kind of bipartisan agreement to reform our current campaign laws, I'll believe they're serious -- and not until. With remarks that sound something like the current Democratic spin, Wamp is attempting to preempt a ''blame-the-Republican-Congress'' publicity barrage anticipated after reform falters just in time for the 1998 campaign season. And, the stance meshes with Sen. Fred Thompson's notion of moving along with legislation now that the Senate hearings have closed -- a factor in Thompson-Lott feuding. Wamp, respected for political instincts that have made his seat safe despite his past personal problems and an evenly balanced Democrat-Republican voter demographics in the third congressional district, may be a trend-settier for the rest of the state's Republican House delegation.

Lamar and Terry on tour

Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, recruited to chair Lamar Alexander's political action committee recently (Newsource, 11/18, 11/21, 11/25), will be in Nashville today (12/8) to meet with Alexander. Officially, they are to go over plans and strategy. Unofficially, Alexander will get to show off his Iowa trophy to home state friends and supporters. The more Alexander and the popular Iowa governor are seen together, the more Alexander's credibility is enhanced among Republicans who count (like those who give money). As long as Branstad is willing, expect a lot of traveling for the duo in the months ahead.

12/5/97

Gore evasive in Times interview

Vice president Al Gore repeatedly "adhered to generalities, declining even to describe what he disliked about the existing system of raising money for campaigns," the New York Times (www.nytimes.com)reported today in a front-page article. It was Gore's first interview since Attorney General Janet Reno decided not to seek the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate his White House fund-raising calls. The bylined article was partially reprinted in on page 11A of today's Tennessean, although not the part described above. Other portions appearing only in the Times: "The vice president struggled for an answer when asked several times whether he had learned any lessons from this year, or whether he would do anything differently in how he raised money" and "Gore also defended some of his closest advisers who have been accused of using their connections to him to lobby the Government in exchange for lucrative fees." Where the Times reported the fund-raising scandal had "upset" Gore's 2000 presidential bid, the Nashville newspaper substituted the word "distracted." Even Tennessean political reporters are embarrassed by their newspaper's bias for the ex-staffer. They joke that if Clinton were to be assassinated, the headine in the next day's newspaper would scream, "It's Al!"

D.O.A.: Charter schools proposal

Members of the state Legislature's Education Oversight Committee are decidedly hostile to proposals for authorizing "charter schools" now that they've had a chance to take up the subject. Gov. Don Sundquist has put himself behind the proposal (NewSource 12/, backed by several conservative groups and subject of considerable favorable media attention. The idea is to let the schools operate without control of regular school boards and free of many rules and regulations. But when Republican Sen. Jeff Miller of Cleveland brought the proposal to the committee on Thursday (12/4/97), Senate Speaker Pro Tempore Robert Rochelle of Lebanon denounced the charter school concept as elitist... and colleagues quickly joined in the rhethorical pounding. Rep. Ulysses Jones (D-Memphis), for example, declared himself frightened by the idea of turning over public education money to "people who want to go back to the little red schoolhouse and reading by candle." Others said waivers available under an existing "break-the-mold schools" state program mean many innovations can already be undertaken and no new legislation is needed for a "new buzz word." There was one suggestion that only the name of the "break-the-mold" program need be changed to qualify Tennessee for federal "charter school" grants. The Tennessee Education Association, which has one of the state's most powerful political action committees and an active lobbying crew, is opposed to the charter schools legislation. The outright hosility shown at the proposal's committee debut shows that TEA is being heard by the politicians it has helped... and that (except perhaps for some lip service like a "break-the-mold" and "charter" name swap) the bill will be dead-on-arrival at the 1998 session.

Rep. West gets anger off his chest

Last year, as executive director of the Tennessee Association for Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitation, Ben West Jr. says he ran into "arrogance, indifference and a complete I-don't-give-a-damn attitude" from state Department of Health bureaucrats. That came at a meeting he set up between department officials and association members that turned into a "shouting match" with some of the rehabilitation service providers walking out in frustration. As chairman of a study committee on alcohol and drug services, the Nashville Democrat Thursday got his anger off his chest in an outburst directed toward Health Commissioner Nancy Menke... praising the attitude of her and top staff but declaring she should "pass it down" to the arrogant "underlings" who need an attitude adjustment to "stop talking down to those people." Only by using his clout as a legislator, he said, was he ultimately able to get the provider questions answered. Menke, who was appointed to the post last year in an "efficiency" move by Gov. Don Sundquist (NewSource 12/4), offered an apology. Later, she said she was was perplexed by the outburst and was unaware of what West was talking about.It takes a truly incompetent bureaucrat not to recognize a state legislator and kowtow appropriately. Maybe Menke should start posting lawmaker mug shots around the offices of underlings to make them more recognizable... or just warn them to be nice to everybody, since the citizen you offend just might have connections.

12/4/97

Efficiency mandate: 1 + 1 = 3

Gov. Don Sundquist's goal of collapsing 22 state departments into 12 (NewSource 12/2) has already started with a measure to combine the Department of Health with the Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation. But if future efforts bear resemblance to present ones, the efficiency may be in the eye of the beholder. The governor brought in Nancy Menke to be overall chief of the new, combined department and set her salary at $120,000 -- top scale for a commissioner. So as not to displace the commissioner of Health, Fredia Wadley, M.D., he named her head of the Division of Health within the new department, also at $120,000 annually (a $12,000 raise). And Ben Dishman, acting Commissioner of Mental Health, was deemed the assistant commissioner of mental health in the consolidated department with no change in his $84,000 salary. Tennessee State Employees Association Executive Director Linda McCarty, no fan of Sundquist, calls the move "silly." "He took two departments and created three commissioners and called that efficency... that shows a tendency to fatten at the top and cut at the bottom, where the real work is done." The Legislature balked at approving a bill to authorize the Health-Mental Health consolidation earlier in the year, with several lawmakers (mostly Democrats) citing lawsuits over conditions in mental health facilities as a concern. The governor, however, chose to leave the structure in place by way of executive order... leaving all in a state of limbo until 1998.With each department having its own constituency, consolidation doesn't come easy... as Sundquist indicated by declaring on Veterans Day that the state Department of Veterans Affairs was exempt from consolidation. Legislators were aware of the constituency of mental health advocates, who saw elimination of their designated department as downgrading the cause, and will likewise be uneasy about agreeing to other consolidations with political fallout.

Vandy snubs Clement collection

U.S. Rep. Bob Clement has "explored the possibility" of Vanderbilt Unversity becoming the permanent home for a quarter century of his collected paperwork, aides say. Vanderbilt's response, in essence: "No, thanks. We don't do politicians' archives... just documents on arts, literature, religion and such." Clement, who has backed away from a 1998 race for governor, as he did in 1994, has been telling folks privately that he really, really, really does intend to run for governor in 2002. A congressman typically donates his papers to -- in Clement's case, they date back to his start as a Public Service Commission member back in 1973 -- when he's ready to retire. When he is really serious about running for governor, Clement will give the papers to a state-supported university that does accept and store politicians' papers -- especially since Clement holds degrees from two of them, the University of Tennessee and the University of Memphis.

12/3/97

Supreme split isolates Justice Birch

Echoes of the 1996 state Supreme Court case that cost Justice Penny White her job appear in a new decision out this week, labeled State vs Andre S. Bland. In last year's case, the justices split over whether the rape and stabbing murder of an elderly Memphis woman was truly reprehensible enough to warrant the death penalty. Justices Aldolpho Birch, Lyle Reid and White said no... and White (the only justice up for a vote last year) was booted from office. In the Bland case, the same question was asked when the 20-year-old male victim was shot nine times in the legs after stumbling upon a robbery in progress... then bled to death in a parking lot. This time, White's successor, Janice Holder, joined Justices Frank Drowota and Riley Anderson in declaring that the crime was reprehensible enough to warrant Bland's execution. Reid wrote a dissent, which Birch supported. Remarkably, the majority opinion contains several pages of judicial criticism of Reid (by name) and his views. (See Opinions.) Reid, who fired back in his dissent, knew the formalized criticism was coming, of course, when he announced that he would not seek re-election (NewSource 11/26). The Bland case displays a political split as the justices head toward re-election next year. By tying himself to the departing Reid as his colleagues deliberately distance themselves, Birch has effectively reinforced his position as a target for those who shot down Penny White.

New call for probe of Haney-Knight deal

While Al Gore is off the special investigator hook for his fundraising phone calls, his friends Peter Knight and Franklin Haney could be the subject of a new inquiry. U.S. Rep. W.J. "Billy" Tauzin, a Louisiana Republican who heads a House subcommittee that oversees the Federal Communications Commission, has asked the Justice Department to conduct a criminal investigation into their involvement in the FCC's 20-year lease of a Washington office building called The Portals (starting at $17.3 million per year). Chattanooga developer Haney, who owns an interest in the building, hired Knight as a lobbyist last year and paid him $1 million. Gore has said he had no communication with Haney, Knight or FCC officials on the deal... (NewSource 11/17) and a Haney spokesman calls it all "a political snipe hunt" and says Knight was working on an array of other assignments, too. An earlier House Commerce committee hearing on the matter produced no evidence of laws broken, but Tauzin says he feels the Justice Department needs to look further.If at first you don't succeed, try, try again... especially if you're a Republican congressman and there's a chance to link Democrats and supposedly dirty dollars.

12/2/97

Sundquist: "The Strategic Plan"

Gov. Don Sundquist's administration is quietly circulating a "strategic plan" for the remainder of his term and well into the next four years he appears so confident of serving. Big chunks of the draft document are vague generalities or rehash previously announced matters (i.e., privatize everything possible; cutting state employee numbers without saying how much). But there are a few new nuggets:

• Consolidating the current 22 state government departments into 12, including a merger of the Department of Employment Security and Department of Labor;
• Authorization of "charter schools" that allow parent boards to run public facilities;
• Requiring each Tennessee child to spend at least one school hour on the Internet every week;
• Enacting legislation to protect children from sexual predators;
• A new resort park in East Tennessee;
• A state forensic autopsy facility;
• An incentive pay program for state employees.

Sundquist has quietly hired a retired Walt Disney executive, Lou Kompare, to head a new "Center for Effective Government" that will coordinate government efficiency efforts, including so-called "one-stop shopping" where a citizen could, in theory, get a driver's license and food stamps while filing his state tax returns and TennCare application at the same place. Of course, studies are mandated on much of this (including a 'work group' to study reducing the number of state boards and commissions, and replacing them, presumably, with work groups). Without a serious opponent, Sundquist has the luxury of indulging in long-range planning -- something sorely lacking in state government circles for many moons. A big plus for the second-term-granted scenario... but can Sundquist actually move these reforms through the Legislature?

No controlling philosophical authority

More than slightly perplexed by a quotation about foxes and hedgehogs that our fellow Tennessean, Vice President Al Gore floated in a current New Yorker magazine interview, we have done our homework. In the interview, Gore fesses up to his mistakes in campaign fund raising and spin control, particularly his now legendary phrase "no controlling legal authority." To drive home his point, the veep says: "You know, to paraphrase the late Isaiah Berlin, 'The fox makes many little mistakes; the hedgehog makes one big one. And that was a very big mistake.'" Berlin, an Oxford philosopher who died Nov. 8 at age 88, actually said: "The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing." It appears in an essay about Leo Tolstoy "The Fox and the Hedgehog" Actually, we're still perplexed. Maybe if he would stick with polecats and 'possums. . .

12/1/97

State GOP a "money laundering machine"?

The Tennessee Democratic Party is preparing a formal Federal Elections Commission complaint against its GOP counterparts, contending the Republicans have violated laws in ways ranging from almost comical to "possibly criminal." The most serious focal point is the state Republican Party's operating account, which Democrats claim has been used to illegally mix money between campaigns for state office and those for federal office. Bob Corney, acting executive director of Tennessee Democrats, says an analysis of five GOP political action committees indicates the account has been used as a "money laundering machine." The Democrats found almost $1.2 million from the PACs -- some designated as state PACs, some as federal -- directed into the operating account. At the same time, the GOP PACs reported receiving more than $700,000 from the same account. State Republican Chairman Jim Burnett says the party is not required to report receipts or expenditures in the operating account so long as they're not used directly for campaigns. Corney calls that contention "phony baloney" and says reporting is required. When the complaint is filed within the next two weeks, the FEC will decide who's right. In the meantime (and FEC action can take years), the Democrats have a state counterattack to Republican charges of Democratic shenanigans on the fundraising front... whether aimed at Vice President Al Gore or the state House Democratic Caucus' awkward attempts earlier this year to coerce lobbyists into fundraising for them.

Fred who?

The Democrats also have turned up an array of what they call "incredibly sloppy bookkeeping at best" by Tennessee Republican PACs. For example, federal campaign disclosure rules require PACs to list the occupation and employer of those making contributions. A GOP 1996 report lists a contribution from a fellow named Fred Thompson, whose address is the Senate Office Building in Washington... but reports his occupation and employer as unknown. Ditto for James Burnett, who most politicos recognize as state GOP chairman... and even the man who signed the PAC disclosure, state party treasurer Joe Arnold. All had only the words "information requested" by their names... indicating the party is trying to figure out who they are. Then there's a Republican PAC that reported a cash-on-hand balance of about $92,500 on Dec. 31, 1996... but in its next report listed a beginning cash balance on Jan. 1, 1997, as $30,000 with no indication of what happened the the $62,500 difference. Says Corney: "They must've had a heck of a New Year's Eve party." There are also several examples of individuals who gave more than the $5,000 maximum donation permitted by an individual to a party PAC. Burnett says the excess donations have been refunded... and acknowledges some "bookkeeping errors" may need to be fixed. Expect lots of joking at Republican expense, but public tolerance for political fund raising shenanigans is dwindling. The record-keepers had better start dotting their "i's" and crossing their "t's."

11/26/97

'Truth in captioning' prevails; 'tiny towns' fall

Would-be tiny towns came out the immediate losers but Tennesseans came out winners with the Supreme Court's remarkably quick ruling striking down the controversial "tiny towns" law. As we reported (NewSource, 11/18) the Supreme Court picked up the case, bypassing the Court of Appeals, to consider the issue of "caption" bills. Such bills, increasingly common in the Tennessee legislature, do not clearly define their intent in their titles, or captions, and are often vague in general when filed. As the legislature proceeds, they can be amended as needed, and legislators who vote for them can later claim, with some truth, they didn't understand the bill's impact. In their brief order, the Supreme Court justices said the "tiny towns" law violated the state constitution's requirement that the subject of a bill be stated in its caption. That stops efforts in some 41 communities across the state that had plans for using the law to become towns or cities... and it's a great victory for the Tennessee Municipal League and existing cities which claimed mushrooming new towns would block their growth. Tiny towns was basically a legislative sneak attack originating from Lt. Gov. John Wilder... attached as an amendment to a bill with a caption giving no hint that the rules for starting new municipalities were being dramatically eased. Beyond the instant impact, the decision means the increasingly bitter confrontations between local governments are thrown squarely back into the Legislature's lap... and that the Legislature is on Supreme notice that sneaky legislation will not be tolerated if it goes to court. The latter could make lawmaking a more open and honest process -- a 180 degree turn from the drift in recent years.

Supreme liberal takes a bow...out

Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Lyle Reid, widely regarded as the most liberal of five members on the state's highest court, has announced he won't seek re-election next year. That was something of a surprise, since he had been telling folks he would... though vowing not to actively campaign. Reid, 67, said that, at his age, he wants to do other (unspecified) things. He declined to answer questions on whether his decision was related to prospects that he would be ousted in the August 1998, yes-no referendum on court members... but most figured him as the most vulnerable target of an ouster effort because of past decisions that have been translated as soft on the death penalty. (In a minority opinion, he once strongly suggested that electrocution should be considered unconstitutional "cruel and unusual punishment" and voted with former Justice Penny White in a controversial case that figured in her defeat last year.) Indeed, he had already been named as most likely target by Tennessee Conservative Union President John Davies and state GOP Chairman Jim Burnett. With the judge most likely to serve as a lightning rod for anti-crime activists stepping aside, his four colleagues can breathe easier when thinking about election time. And Gov. Don Sundquist gets his second appointment to the five-member court that historically has been an all-Democrat bastion... though he must choose from nominees submitted by a Judicial Selection Commission.

11/25/97

Lamar and Iowa gov PAC it up

As predicted (NewSource 11/21) Lamar Alexander and Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad formed a tag team on Monday, promising to work together to raise at least $2 million for Lamar's political action committee and jointly help the GOP do good things, like better education, crime fighting and giving money to Republicans who endorse those controversial principles. In other words, Branstad will be chairman of the Alexander-founded "Campaign for a New American Century" now that he's finished being chairman of the National Republican Governors Association. No, they both said, this doesn't mean Branstad is endorsing Lamar 2000. After all, Alexander isn't a formally declared candidate yet and, as Brandstad said, "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Yes, the PAC is concerned with education, but as Lamar said in his prepared text: "Our country doesn't have an education problem, we have a political problem." And the answer to that political problem is... Lamar! Alexander's strategy of focusing early on Iowa and New Hampshire thus pays its first dividend. With Branstad, Alexander has recruited a proven fund raiser who can do more than simply raise money. But why is Branstad still playing coy?

Molten Metals Meltdown, the rest of the story

Molten Metals Technology, the outfit that hired "Al Pal" Peter Knight (more routinely described as confidant and advisor to Vice President Albert Gore Jr.) as lobbyist, then got $33 million or so worth of federal Department of Energy contracts, has declared itself financially strapped. The company says it's slashing jobs - first a couple hundred in other states and then in-yet-to-be-announced numbers at facilities tied to DOE nuclear waste cleanup operations in Tennessee. (MMT has 190 employees at Oak Ridge.) The Knoxville News-Sentinel www.knoxnews.com reports the company is blaming some of its problems on publicity over the Knight-Gore-DOE ties that drew investigative attention in Washington. Gore may gather political Teflon to cover the controversy, but out in the real world people lose their jobs.