june 1997 minnesota journal - citizens league · editors oppose tax credits, urge education...

Minnesota Journal Inside This Issue A publication of the Citizens League

From NIMBY to RIMBY. - Page 2.

Editors want education compromise - Page 3.

Minnesotans rank sixth in taxes. - Page 8. Volume 14, Number 6

June 24,1997

Value in tax-increment districts rebounds Edison asks The amount of Minnesota's tax base by Dana Schroeder off bonds to cover expenses of hi ri ng , f u rids set aside through a widely used, but preparing a site for development- controversial, development financ- 1994. It was the greatest annual for the life of the TIF district, ing tool called tax-increment financ- percentage growth since 1991. which can range up to 25 years,

control in ing ('IF) rebounded for the second depending on the type of district schools straight year, growing by more than And while the 1997 Legislature involved. five percent in tax yeas 1996. The mildly loosened certain TIF restric- by Dana Schroeder

-vth in TIF value in 1996, the tions, it also authol-ized a new tax The tax base captured in TIF dis- . recent figures available, con- abatement program intended to tricts in 1996 amounted to Editor's note: Following are edited

tinued the trend of increasing TIF reduce TIF usage by offering cities $213,579,733, or 6.13 percent of excerpts of an inform1 May 9 con- value that had been broken by a six a11 alternative development tool. the state's total property tax base of versation of Citizens League mem- percent decline in TIF value seen in nearlv $3.5 billion. As the chart on bers with Benno Schmidt. Schmidt is

TIF allows communities to "cap- shows, this is the lowest chaiiman and CEO of the Edison ture" the increased property-tax percentage of value captured by Project, a private company that revenues-the "tax increment"- TIF in the last six years. State creates generated by a development to

opened its first four pilot public schools around the country in 1995.

finance some of the costs of that (The tax base figures discussed in It will open 14 or 15 more schools in new sector development. The increased tax this article are tax capacity values, the fall, including two new charter

in public revenues are not available for gen- which are the values used to com- schools in Duluth. era1 city expenses or to other taxing pute property taxes. Because Min-

education districts, like the county or school nesota taxes different types of prop- Q. How does Edison open a district. Rather, they are resewed erty at different rates, tax capacity school? for TIF expenses-such as paying

Continued on page 6 Continued on page 3 by Ted Kolderie

WCCO-AM used to have a cosre- spondent who covered Wisconsin state government as if it were a psize-fight: "The Governor lands a sight to the head; the Speaker coun- ters with a left to the body." You simply could not tell what it was all about.

The reporting may be like that here this summer, as Minnesota state p-velnment works toward a deci-

about K-12 education: Gov. ~a r l son and the education groups, fighting.

Continued on page 6

June 24, 1997

Involving citizens in design, evaluation of public services can boost quality, trust "How are we doing?'In the past, evaluating the quality of public services was mainly an inside job. hb l i c managers and elected officials usually talked to each other, while citizens were given precious little oppoaunity to say what they thought about the services bought and paid for with their tax dollars.

That pattern is beginning to change-and for good reasons.

by Janet Dudrow, Lyle Wray and Jody Hauer

First, citizens now expect from public programs the same quality of service to which they have grown accustomed from banks, retailers and countless other consumer businesses. Government officials ignore citizen consumers at their peril.

Second, local governments are

MINNESOTA JOURNAL

increasingly concerned not only about the pragmatics of water service, fire protection and the like, but about broader, "softer" concerns that determine the quality of life in their communities. City officials can determine easily enough how well their f ~ e department is per- forming by looking at objective data. But for public services that deal with quality-of-life concems-

Continued on page 5

Editors oppose tax credits, urge education compromise Bill D e e , the newly appointed executive &&or of the Nafional . Association of&gional Co&, has a way with mnepts. &ved yeim ago, Ilk2 capnrred an emerging paradox @ h a he mid hit our governments m based on lo&es, states and. nations, but our chal- lenges m emwging at the Jreigh- borhsod, region and inmmtion~ levels. Ow s Z r u c ~ , in other words, do not match the shape af the c h d m g t ~ cam at mi. A h y ctmlkxigeis to find new ways to respond b thess m&im so &at our re@ons can thrive.

linhgm, as well, Mthwgh tJI@ P"w mtrol cbt3e&po,@ kweem the two corn cities have h n taken down in recent ye ~ m s m ~ f r ~ r.? fmmmulti~leadmhip mining programs of Chambm of &in- me= to mdtipk UaiW Ways all working in a singIe mgim. We dtostaabuildingbridges across the region and ~ m s s swtoa within themgian. Mow a h t a &I- gle Leadership Metno p r o p instead of city-by-~ity pragrm? How about a m d m p ~ l h United Way qpmwh to welfare changa & C W ~ ~ W ~ ~ O U . d t h & @V@B county governments in the thedm7 The: list is endless and action is avdue.

Star ' lk ihne &led @lay 21) fb special w&on perhaps 'The m w m n m d af all the s d a l sa%

mccessm." It Wed the l&of . resolution on a Twins stadium '%he . bkaest &amointment of the ses- I Me wpoint

C! in %matass I;%, fit- YdYdlegi&tive &oq? It said

Gov. h e Ga&~n"&ould eon- cede that the case Ws made for plrlvate-whm1 b a l z s bm not been a&fi&My pmasivee5' & PaulH-PI:esrs said way 21) h opposed t ' k W s tax break plan rtndMWd thefRg- i s l ~ m W d hwve W ~ n e d a rnmgrQmih;@ without "a W I ~ spe4.d & o n . " ~ h News- ' I b l b ~ ~ e said (May 211 CafLon should wcq t as a "lost fighr" his failure to conwince 1- and h ~ W & % e M o m o f h i s & credit plm. It miti& lawmalam for 'Wlhg mast j%m-uid reform e ~ f f o ~ h ededaiion, 1t %wid may 29), T t h e best and brightege sW dm@ h v e publie ~choob batrse v-oucb~ or tax &ts make th& pmslb1ed .&mm will Exs lekt bebind in ~%utioans that lack p o l i ~ ~ e1mt md ~"es-:"'Rmo Fo~~~&~~app&i+ed my 23 Carl- m's~hitlhtiwa "Comg&tim isn't the: aBwqrv h o u n W t y & . IVIhmmta taxpayers &odd

and thai more &wl funding where it belongs-@

md@& ta the c k r m ' "

.-. -- ~ion.', w&i&entraI ~~ (Willmar) said @hy '22) ik 1997 session '"speaks to the need for a ttnkzmdd legisjatme in Mirmese L? It the wo-house s y s m causes 'h la& of responsibility and wcounW@? Tt the public is 111-sewed by the concsenmion of paver into a 1%-ber d e r - enm mfnmim that ckxidm the ~ s h a p s d a b i l l . I i s a i d ~ y 12) a miemeral le&lam wauld bied~ce Fbe qqmftmitks for mmi@dm d ttre politicd proms by by mtemtstsU himeton Uajion-'Eagle agreed may 13). It ~aIletl i 2 ~ bbmd syamWe&- m-, expensive and ineEcie~t"

The q u e h is, How da we M d a stronger sense ofRIEuiBY?-s~ ~ Y ~ ~ y * c a t . e o f W w w e d e a J . w f i r n w @ d dtia,

broad ownaship Eor b y regional p& Following thr~ugh on this at a re@onal level-ma U y in a public-private pafQ~*psb,uld b e a g o a l f o r t h e m t ~ t o Bve years. I .

gwted that le@I&ors agree to c a r w s prqposed $10 maion in h d h g fb charter mhoob. Fergus Falls Dally Jonrrtal ~d (1-6) the 13ovmor's plm is 'heitlm rad- ical m m n & e and W a compromke &odd inc1ude mgst ofthem&&dd&c~ns the governor ja swkbg. Bbw Tri. bum said (June 10) stamspon- smdresMentM p~tp.ntid*~ schools for hold students

~ b ~ l r e ' * ~ t b r o ~ & ~ ~ n s in large pubbo mhds.'' It sqgwt- exl spanaxkg a pUat faddential whm1 program QG a way to help chil- most in need.

Fhm Pms d e d on Nay 135 Cadson to provide 1 lth-ham I&- ership &I m e me@&~gful prop a i y m reforms, kRmm should 'bnmany h 0 m e o m ~ ~ ' t ~ ~ X h e i r ~ ~ b a f ~ ~ &am.'" It praised May 21) the Ieg- is1ame"s dm&ion to reduce prop e r ~ taxes on coromercisl-ind&al and tqmrtmm tams. W a t @ Bkea Press &aid (June 33 tke, property m bill ''isn't an overhaul, but 2's a dearit $tan.'' Qowd Thts said ($me 3), 'wArlitll?eSoEa mayem hoping far anew Win- mots Miracle" 199.7 insteal got the MinnexmMmge." It said the $ljoo &a that eventually went to a &am to h o m w n m could have prmilded a cn&b to wo* wit& to give people time to adjust to reaI s w m dorm.

Build Lt regha1 vi$m In the current galti4 wmld h aus =&on and many o w I power h v q dk- przrsd, with a m a inclusive dwi- s ion-mug m c w . Tbis can . lead P paiafw_Uy slow dc%i&on- making and to grid* if we do floEshrtl?eav&$onarkeygoalsdat aIlicwvusto~&izrsdralIyat critical points. W & n g with a w m ~ W ~ i & h vision -its iqkatimal gods, ope -say-is auvaytodmwout and fwus c~mm@ty en- on item n* @n.

Forum om new rdELes. Massive change ishitting OW- major secm. bus- g 6 m r y t an8 the aid^ md n w - f i t sWprpr M ~ r e jlnprkmfly, t h m lmss~v& chaqges-from busin* @o&- tion b d e m w & change& have s i m a n t i m p @ on how ea& ea31 and sboa cmtribnte to*. t heemot lgoad .bb%or rn : key worlzta b Win intbdati.ng signif3caht con\rer$agw trf1"khh and across h e tfiree seeioa about how m deal wirh d @ m t regional needs. 'm to b c W $ a single wmr may feel gim4 bat we wed to move bey~nd that m the more cM* and po~ntidly hitfd dialogue arauad new&es and q t p p k t e ~ . m e s to them,

We& W s at it again. At a i[;"hau- tauqua form earlier this month on ~ @ ~ n a t i m ~ he fiaiaeda 13ew mwym: RRvEGY-the R&on is My Bwkyad. In ewerm, we should spmd mcm b e building he pmx~fion and mdity in our re@m thatwe are all in this togetha- and spend 1- time react- h g to the NM33Y-n~t~ my back ~ ~ o w C L

We mein a sea of change-accel- mating urban growth, dmt i i tg ~ehnologicd &age, rapidlyT dunging derno~aphr i~4mt dm& that we wa% on m y chdengml such as Iran-on and the ecoaomy, at amgiond l ~ d - We n& tc, hit 'btmxh d ~ o & s " t o w& on o u r ~ W ~ I n ~ ~ , n . A a d wetleedm do it now.

hPm@endorsed@Iayl@ plans for a rural policy center at Maakato State University. It said ( J m 10) b t perhaps the biggest 0 ~ ~ 1 f : to l0ng-m m o m i c g Q w t h i t r n t r a l ~ t a i s " t h e failure tohap yo- m b r s and young f%milies in oumte m- nemta." St. Chad Tjma said (May.183 small towns and f&g c o m e t i w face a m b v of prob1-, km df comu- nip, disappmnee offarms, dco. ~ l a ~ ~ - a m a ; t n _ g y o u n % geople--thae must be recogtired More they be solved.

Dulnth NewTdime said (May 13) St. hul" s em&m% with 8ylvan Imming LIenb~ for remedial &&ding and math help show p* mutts. b"c]~mtia,g with for-pro& f-irms n e d not taint a district? The key Mt af the worth of such anangemen@ is %hetherit iraprovwi dmation." It said @s&y 20) that b &hXSO& Of Ap@ s h d d dkdw &e lawwit filed by the ldinnesrn Falenttion of Tttachers challenging Drilutk's plans to have the Fklison hject opera rar~ charter SChooIs.

The Minnegota ~ t o m s ~ ~ , b.wolviq lO,Q00 Minxmaw a f m years back, was a begimhg. We probably h o w m e of the p h dour vision aha&-such a s p & h g ~ U ~ t ; y q f M i n - ,

motaba&intathoverytaptrralrs af public math imthtions as a lan&be;m inmmmat ia m wno- my and quality oflif̂ +but wcs needtaspnclthetimei~build

There @ a m m t h g l i e W o n around the amtrytrythat regims are t h e ~ u n i r 0 f t h e ; m e ; r ~ I l e w monomy and that we typidly,live and work in a rq@m and not w i a a municipal boundary. We have not t&entBe~le~t~te$smtQremg- n i z e t h @ i n ~ m o f e a r e devdapd mas and submban mm.

Dultlth Nm+T&me said Way 24") htest le@slat;ive mforms t~ Minnm0ta:ca;te h a m d fhe pro- g r a m 1 ~ ~ o d m ~ f o r h 0 w state%: can @SUE hdth c m far

mi&&? L&? Way is ma&ve dirw~, the G i n s Laagw.

X Build informal regional linkages, Just as we are building n w b c r - hood 8-$rlz in om two m e dti* we need to build r e g i d

Pioneer Prem suggskd May 30) a c m p m s e : tax deduction Redmign for private the

andpmcfpldPuif~nsothe wealthiest w v e less or no dt%lu%-~fl d mote izq~~efishea f&& more. It also sug-

I

Rd Wing Repablim E@e caJld May 27l the legislative session "one ofthe mo* civil in recent years* but..also m e of t h ~ most

Nonpmfits must take bolder, unified role in public policy Edison Our typical school year for kids

goes about 205 davs. The national Mid& excepts o $ r m b by Mar- cia K e U e r ~ , director of@& policy@r the A@pylesaba Comil of Nonptrgj&$, & t& C2rim on May 13.

Thtmaresame~tamangryand ha&. Some are hein$ w g crwtive md oppo* in the v e r y b t mlse of word

ties and the p p l e we serve, we've been very fortunate in the large number of teachers, both from the districts we're in and from outside, that have applied to work in our schools. We've actually had a lot of flexibility in how many district folks we take as against new people coming in.

f i b Mh~e50ta Journal average is 178. ~i-nnesota is 170? Let me tell you, 35 days makes a difference. Our school day is about two hours longer.

Continued from page 1 WWer - i#e Wray

'WiW-DBnaI- &&&ll&~&@Or -w K€Xkk3tb

t 3 k h - m

IM UW~W& ~ouma~ (MOP&~W~ c a &&"o fie ~itlzeos Lt4sguta a nonprofit norparKsan Twln GItlas pubk affak orgadax- tin, 708 3, Third St,, %Re 500, NI'mm$~lis, MN W1& Mike Chrism presidfsnt Mcl@ s d l d o b m m ~ r n ~ f i w n a ~ x o d r s n ~ d e t$'f pe+'nrw'and do not m a y MI&

pstkman pdby qumtim m Jaw- d is pfl6llshe'd moe a month, Periodlmls poag6@ai@@ Minneapolis, MN.

Tweaty-seven c m p m e founrla- tiaw aad private foundations have pooled FheiYman* to cmte the3 ~ e $ o t e t F u t u r e s M , w h i e h f l over the next two-and-a-half pars p v i d e d grants ii2rnmprof'rts a%. they lmk atnew ways of ddiver- ing serzfir:~ in tinm of change.

In order to prod& the services b y aeed to prod*, nonproflta m g& to haw g m g . They% @% t ~ b ~ t 0 h k f t f $ d B f 8 *mdthe?.Y"tlx:g41e;tahewdo thin@ merenay. They're going ts b v e to antic@@ chmp and b y are going ta bave ta misit.

The amprofit seobr iW has cam together in an unpw&ad way-as 1MO -ro stand up and say farr essential prhdples:

Schmidt: When we take over a school, we ask the districts for the right of mutual selection with respect to the principal and teachers. We only want teachers who apply, who want to teach in the Edison schools. We want the right to pick the ones whom we believe will work out best. We ask for the right, as well, to ask teachers to leave or to transfer. Our contracts are always careful to protect the full contractual rights and job security of teachers and others from the district.

~ W W B ~ M S hathdy- b g demoaacy sxld one is that the ~ b e m m b ~ t h i e s t a a r d & p o m t is narrow and the othier is b t f f r e - ~ p g a p i s s m a l l . Etla country in those two arena^, we are dPiftingf.imher&Mer~&

The typical American public school has about 1,080 hours a year. We have 1,480. Our kids have the equivalent of about four more years of school by the time they get to rhe eighth grade.

Q. Do you differentiate in paying the staff? @ We have a bi& qWty of @-in

Ivhsmok We will not. k t W t be eroded. We laow that not e v e m e enjoys that. E u ~ sbould par- ti~ipam in tW@@ dHeinMn- 068otst.

Schmidt: Sometimes our compensation contracts with staff are nego- tiated with unions; sometimes we're free of that and we just set the compensation. On average, the teachers in our school make about 12 percent more.

This fund% now rrtiaed $1.275 million in the private $ex:W. A8 of Xast night in the &onomic Devel- p e n t Comm- the publis. sm tor voted a $750,Qi00 match.

Vht am nmprafi@ bobg about it? Inthew&mrus:bhg, weare go% .to have to kick im high gar* It is time for ~~npro f lb to @ W S w b b y aeirz &is.speP m- We n d ta do b n g a c e gathering. We rmd to b o w what we need to h o w to anticipate and mme with the changes 4 to t a b

Q. Are any of your teachers hired from outside?

W s akadspecbrwn ofmpom- m. Some nonpmfi~ =in mtal ~ . T 4 e y ~ b e k v e ~ t t h e i r work i~ W's work $bid hinobody ~ b u c h 1 ~ L e S m e ~ ~ y ~ t l r o s e &ysmovv. Ilha6dliUbe?enma.

@ -1egi*and- m t mdz up the &Terence arld m e a n a c l t & m l n w e * w .

Schmidt: We always ask in our contracts for the right to hire from outside. We always assure the district we're not threatening any- body's job security. We'll never hire more new teachers than the district has openings. To date

Annual lx&dpml ride for 1 X ) m e IsW isshtm orm &a pked at ~ 1 2 ~ 3 8 -

or by mil at thaabove addms. 6% Postmastee Smd addm changes to The f&- nwta Jeuinal, 708 8. n l d R,, %lie 500, NBn- i%%pOtb, MN 55615

None of this is going to work ' nonpfits &on? take a bolder 6. an a clearer and a more urd.Eied role in public policy work. If -'re not at the titbl~, w@'D be O E ~ the table.

Q. Do you set your compensation by anything other than seniority? * The nonprofit sector h impor-

ttmt. We need ta b p it via and sustainde.

Our schools are choice schools as far as parents are concerned; no parent ever has to enroll a child.

tbe q~gmtuni.ties &at are there in the~tinmesfsoftbe~~mmuni- Tirere are some that are in d e w .

Continued on page 4

MINNESOTA JOURNAL June 24,1997 MINNESOTA JOURNAL

phenomenal to work with the best curriculum they've ever seen. The tcachers know they're being given curricular instructional material that research says has the best chance of really reaching the kids.

where the gears 111esh. than public school politics. But most of the time if the parents are on our side, that's a force to be reckoned with.

for interpretive centers, wave pools and many other amenities-totaled several hundred million dollars. When the parks commission invit-

to quality-of-life con- "Tlznt's 011 nice ... but cerns, especially, citi- ~11hat Lve're really zens are more likely to P concerrzecl about is .... believe that govern- Are you going to nlent is "on track? if keep toile f pciper they have helped irz the r.estroo1~zs?'' decide what it ought to do in their community. When public officials respond to citizens' feedback by making the suggested improvements, they send the public a message: government can be trusted.

Q. Now does this work out eco- nomically for Edison?

Continued from page 3 Continued from page 1

Schmidt: Yes, we have incentive compensation. In all of our promo- tions and hiring, experience is something we take into account, but there's no seniority schedule.

ed groups of citize~ls to look at models of the oroiect and asked Schmidt: We ask to receive as our Q. Now do you see the whole

movement going of Wall Strd: i~lvesting in education?

qerception of safety, for exam- &- or the appeal of recreational opportunities-it's much more difficult to define and measure good pel-formance objectively, let alone figure out how to improve it. It's essential for citizens to be involved in setting the direction for these public services and evaluating their performance.

per pupil revenue as close as possi- ble to 100 percent of everything the district spends. The Coopers and Lybrand study of all 15,000 public school systems in the country con- cluded that the average spent in the school for instruction is only about 60 percent of total district spending.

L .l

detailed questions about what they valued about parks, the message was unexpected. People said plain- ly what they wanted: clean restrooms and better signs on park sites. They showed little interest in the costly capital projects.

I can't tell you how often teachers have said when they get the laptops, "Gee, nobody ever even gave me a pencil."

Schmidt: There's a tremendous hunger in the United States for businesses that do a good job in education, whether it's teaching middle-class kids how to do better on the SAT-Kaplail, for instance;

Q. Have you seen patterns in terms of teachers that yon have selected? We provide all our teachers with a

minimum of five weeks full-time professional development training before our schools open. The senior teachers get 10 weeks. Most public schools give their teachers less training than the fellows who han- dle the bags over in the hotel lobby.

Schmidt: We have some biases in whom we select. The main selection bias comes from the teachers. We tend to get more young teachers.

Had this park board decided on its own to make the capital improvements, it might well have found no improvement in public satisfaction with the parks. After ail expenditure of several hutldred million dollars, such a result would have been emba~~assing, to say the least. The lesson: It makes good sense to ask citizens to define value in public services, particularly before making major investments.

We try to reserve enough to be able to buy all the technology and pay the teachers and support the 65 people in our central headquarters operation. There are some things we spend less money on. We don't have as many specialists.

whether it's remedial instruction for disadvantaged kids-Sylvan; whether it's teaching kids English who speak no English-Sylvan

What is important to citizens? Over the past several decades, the private sector has dramatically boosted its attention to what customers want. Businesses today know they can't assume what people like, they have to ask-system- atically and often. The market research tools businesses use, such as focus group interviews, surveys and even informal listeniug by salespeople, have become increasingly sophisticated.

A key starting point is to hear from citizens what is importarit to them and what they think a desirable future for their community should look like. Public discussions that clarify citizens' values, develop a shared vision of the comnlunity's future and help forge a consensus about top-priority actions for government provide a sound foundation for quality-of-life improvement efforts. The vision and priorities can help guide public- sector budget decisions.

the Legislature. However, it has not been picked up as a goals frame- work by local goverilments or the nonprofit sector.

Q. Why is that? does some of that. All across a whole wide range of companies that are doing educationally related things business is booming.

Schmidt: It may be that younger teachers are slightly more ready to tiy something new. There are risks in this. This is new. It's controversial in some ways.

They're part of a highly professional environment. They get more pay. If we're successful, they're part of a very, vely rapidly growing enter- prise. We've had teachers in our Wichita schools who've moved into positions in our Miami schools.

Some performance measurement information will be more ineaning- ful to citizens when it is reported for small, local conim~~nities or neighborhoods. For instance, the city of Portland, Oregon, reports on quality-of-life measures at the neighborhood level. The Citizens League has often recommended that each school in Minnesota provide a "value for spending" report to parents. When citizens see how public service efforts directly affect their own lives, they are better able to judge whether they are getting value for their tax dollars.

There are various ways you can take that same amount of money and make it work and make a mod- est profit. If we're able to fillfill a fairly large number of Edison part- nerships around the country, we will make it a successfi~l business.

The harder, different question is whether something may happen in the core activity of schools-not just public schools, by the way. Pri- vate schools are just as anachronis- tic as public schools. They're still 19th century. They have a lot of good people. They do a lot of things well. But they are horse and buggy institutions.

We give all our teachers laptops on the first day of their training. All our schools are networked. We put computers in the homes of all our families, starting in first grade. We give them the phone line if the fam- ily is so poor that they don't have a phone line. In some of the conimu- nities where we are, almost 25 percent of the student population doesn't have a phone line.

Citizens aren't just consumers of public services, however. Citizens can and should play an active role in delivering importailt services- by "adopting a highway" or tutor- ing a child, for instance-that make communities pleasant, attractive and healthy places to be. When it comes to improving a collmuni- ty's quality of life, government cannot do it alone; productively engaging volurlteers and self-help movements as partners with government is crucial to successf~~l impmve~nent efforts.

Part of what we do with our longer school day is tly to set up a schedule so that each teacher gets two hours a day free of ally responsibili- ties to engage in lesson preparation or professional developmei~t activities with colleagues.

Public sector managers should take a lesson from businesses and use similar techniques to get to know citizens as customers of public ser-

-s. Knowing-not guessing- .,,t customers notice, like and

&like in their brief interactions with public services can give important clues to how service could be improved.

Q. Duluth has had six superin- tendents in 10 years. How do you go in there and presume to be successful?

Public agencies should use public discussions like these as a starting point for a pei-formance measurement system based on citizen concerns and interests. And the results of these evaluations must be coin- municated to citizens in clear, meaningful terms: How does the quality of the public service stack up against what the community said it wanted and against past measures? How does performance compare with the promises govel-11- inent made? How does the cost of these results compare with the costs in other communities? Is the community moving closer to the vision of its desired quality of life? What changes did the local govem- meilt make to improve its services, based on the results of the performance measurement? Answers to these questions not only reveal where change is needed to iinprove service delive~y, but also call help citizens set reasonable expectations for services.

If Edison looks like it's worlun, about two years my guess is you'll see some very big, vely capable, very well-capitalized companies come in and say, Can we do this better at the same or lower price?

Schmidt: We try to make our parents militant, armed and datlgerous. When parents get really into tlie defense of a great school, they have a certain amount of political power. One reason we've scattered our schools around in different states is that we know there are probably no politics in America that are more treacherous or harder to control

From an economic point of view, the added time we're asking thein to work is reasonably well compen- sated. A lot of teachers are serious- ly demoralized by their current working arrangements, quite apart from financial compensation, and would like to work in a school

We expect the teachers to figure this out. A lot of teachers are so phobic about that.

Involvillg citizens ill pe~fomlance measurement call helo rebuild citi-

Case in point: Managers of one agency spent a great deal of money upgrading its computer system in

zens' sense of responsibility for their communities. Asking citizens for consumer feedback about the quality of public sei-vices can be an attractive "hook" to get people con- nected with their local goverrlment. But public officials must view citi-

I think that'll be healthy so long as school boards exercise a high degree of real responsibility. Since I believe the public schools are lit- erally stultified by this bureaucratic monopoly structme, my own opin- ion is that bringing in competition and choice inay make schools- what are now the most shlltified, a~lachronistic institutions in our whole society-some of the most vital and innovative and interesting institutions.

Our con~pensation system and pro- Citizens also can be partuers in the performance measurement task itself. With appropriate training, citizens can help evaluate the quality of sei-vices as diverse as street ~nainte~iance and libraries. Tapping volunteers in this way helps control the costs of evaluation. It also rein- forces an ethic of citizenship and educates the public about how government is working to improve service quality.

motion policies are based on performance. Most public school teachers have never had anything like that.

order to reduce bya few seconds the computer response time at public service desks. Had they asked, the public managers might have discovered that customers were sat- isfied enough with the wait times but were confused by the building layout and put off by the halied staff. The managers might have seen a bigger iniprovement in cus- tonier satisfaction-and at a far

" ... Then of coclrse, with the Edisorz Project ~ w ' l l be offering pay bcrsed on perfou7zalzce nncl ... Mr. Olso71 ... Mr. Olson ... "

zens as more than just consumers. And citizens must view goveru- We get more than our share of

Type A, driven, hard-driving teachers. We don't get many who apply who are marking time. A correct criticism of Edison inay be that we're creaming the better teachers.

ment as more than a purveyor of convenient sel-vices. That's whv it's illlportant ultimately to engage citizens in the difficult work of defin- ing the public interest and help- ing-personally-to achieve it. lower cost than the computer

upgrade-had they recruited a vol- Arguably, we're getting more than our share of teachers who have an urge to excel and perform. Fairly typically we get 10 applications for each position. We had almost 3,000 applications for 25 places in Boston.

Dana Sclzlveder is editor of tlze Minnesota Jouinal. A more cor7z- plete version of the coizversatio7z with Schnziclt will be available at tlze Citizens League's World Wicle Web site: /ztty:/~reerzet.i?z.r~).n~~z. ~ ~ s / i l ~ o l k i t i z e r ~ .

Reweaving tlie social fabric. That leads to the other, more com- pelling reason to get citizens involved in performance measurement: Doing so can help rebuild citizens' deeply eroded trust and con- fidence in government and cultivate the good habits of citizenship.

unteer or two to greet customers with a smile, a cookie and helpf~ll directions.

.lc~~zel Durlr-o~v i . ~ a research associ- ate wiflz tlze Citizerzs League, Jocly Hnuer is coordii~ator of best pizrc- tices review;, at tlze Ofice of the Legislative A~rclitor and Lyle Wray is executive rlirector of the Citizens League and fornzer rrchzirlistmtor of Dakota Courzty. Tlzis article is ad~117tedfionz orze by Hauer rind Wrgy tl~at will appear in the upcomirzg issue of the professzonal jourlzal Public Management.

Here in Minnesota, the Minneso Milestones process has involved more than 10,000 citizens in idel - bing goals and setting priorities enhance and maiiltain the state's quality of life. The Milestones process has been used to guide state department performance reports and budgets s~tbmitted to

Public service managers also should ask beforehand what service . -rs or potential users want in a

, , or expanded service. Consider me cautionary tale of one parks department that had developed a vely large and ambitious capital improvement plan. The price tag-

Q. What do the teachers say about teaching in these kinds of schools?

Citizens trust government when they believe it is doing the light things most of the tirne-and doing those tl~ings right. When it comes Schmidt: What they say is that it's

June 24, 1997 MINNESOTA JOURNAL June 24, 1997 MINNESOTA JOURNAL 5

PERCENT OF MlNfleSOTA PRQPERM TAX BAsE , IN TAX-iNCMENf PINANCIMG DtSTRlOTS

O/o

8 * iti*

'88 '&I I S 5 'a I&' &89 19D '91 92 '94 '95 'SS TAX YEAR

TIF W c c t ~ C B u n d a s 3 a 3 . 3 ~ Intem&iohal B& 35.1 pmam; f%mim7 33-4 pmt; andP1omg Wq 29.2p-q~~. Miwpapo- Its:l?ad 128pmmfof b t a z b m ixpfud in TP St, Paul had 6.Q &?elvent.

S o i t % s y b a g d t i m e t o s Q back &m the isme of the rnomen-fklson's proposed tax ~t~ we m sw clwly the large &age IvEmwotnt k shwly, steadQ htrochwing into its system ofp*&Gatim.

PUBLIC EDUCATION

District-Owned Schools Non-District-Owned Schools Neighborhood schools Alternative schools Magnet schools Contracted schools Open enrollment to schools Charter schools

in other districts Postsecondary Options

Principles No charging tuition No teaching religion Open admission Accountable to public authority for student performance

C m b in b mwn-eomty who area eontabd a ttiqmpr- tionate s h e of- b m captmd in rn &tt.ict% Whi ld the me@O area cm- Qpaxnt af tb @ate's tax base, it sMIIFaided 76 p e r e e n t . o f W b b w c e d i n TJFdistrk&.Mmareafl3P& ;rri&, on a w q e , me much lmgw ehan xacimmm &swictBI with m diE%ricfs a m g a a a v w d S S e i m e r r t h e v d ~ d n ~ &stric@ The average Betro-ma n[F wntained $31B,789 ai'ca@mdtaxbz&~ w'hilethe ayemge n o m m ?TP IBi8m'ct m- tabled $S7D44)rF.

PRIVATE QLEGAfiON

Nonpubtic &$wok tndmdet l t $&oQl~ Faror4hEal s&mk Home sch001s

w- - r OK to &rg~+ tuitiion * OK b t@&h retligion a way =lee students

Not acooeountable to publie ~iuthorfty for student perfarman-

The n[F W e t in Irondale Townn ship mampasses a w d pducts p h t built rlem b &ea of Cmby trnd Dmood. m & a c t his lz capmad value of $49$9723, cQm- par& to the t o ~ ~ p ' s toM tax h d 8 9 0 4 1 6 8 . Nst TIFBXBS mowkd to $484,290 in 1996.

1t7s impma tits to s e ~ W W U ~ ~ didapt do. Mmr the Ndon At r&pmin 1985, lvEmxotadid nar g~ with fJxepoplw n&od mte gy of i l q f ~ ~ p l i i ~ ~ existing &strbQsy?mn: tw@ Em teaGIrerse Mts fm kids, hger day and parI 6tG. mucatom thought =those ~ o u s Mimesoh s&ooSls"' mpbd no impmmenti ref- *erred instead to ms ate a dpade and &ci)mtabIle, s w tor wirbin publi~ edumtion. This s m m , m h b a m

1985, q g e m B "Nan-Db- tlf.Ct-OW S&W under rhe

sh~wed i@ confJi&g fer:hgs &out W by also sofmhg some of the m;rric~m,

ement unitsJ like countia, sohml distrbts and qxmd diskiw-and, indireeliy, the sta1's aid payments.

'Yublic Education5' heading in the wompiu* jpqllie, so:

In 1985 :50 Busty Perpi& and W e p . C o ~ Z w t r i s W ~ t a t a t t ? inb pblk-schwl choice, ~4th €be @#on E0~Mdst.o fbhhhigh sclraolkmlle~;e~

0 By 15387 atdsk stmI&.~B cmld E h w t h & l & g m .

0 By 1989 dl stu$ents had the light to w m to t-a m c r '

~ e & , i t & s n o M c w t o mm 0f*tirn8 TbqwilI SW- vhe.andg&paid, whetbornat tltey S& with& job they have been given to cia

As awhole, the twva-mb ~ m k a d 7 J ~ o f ~ &~craptuPedinTIFdis~etsin 1996, w m to 3.9 pmmt in Gma@r&w~ !medig. TJF distxics Tmbase g ~ w by cap 45

~ m t i n ~ m ~ ~ a n d ~ 6-9 percent in i n t e r 34kmmtw.

h e ongoing conem is the dTIF on stam school aid py- m , & M $ B j d & s W a md up paylag an &~mal$152 &Eon in Serrb school stid in 1B7 to o f f s iEdu&d pmperty @a mv- e m to ,who01 & ~ t s that lose mb219e@Tn;&s$i6tsL In 19SQ WWlab&edW* &d to local p ~ v m m b be &d em post-1990 m & ~ * to t i o ~ ~ h o 0 l a i c 3 ~ ~ I n ~ ~ p a t i ~ o & t e h e stare's &-

1997 &&B aid paymats will be reduced by $2.4 milEonun&W pprision.

This sWte~.--of m&g OJlpx t lb nities hr S&D b t rntm hca- h s for 4M-i~ clrive-n by the gmwbg conc~mn both about qdq and about. p&ormmm:

rn&smd*m&g dtiw ~ 5 d ~ ~ ~ n or less and l m ~ a t l e a & l D r n i l e g ~ a d f s t of 10,OOO~llriun ormw] 0 u s e T I F f o r m o ~ e a n d t e ~ de.vel-m *here no redevslop- m a t is nm&d.

Detqite intms~rmi~~ cmmi- @US iegi~1trto~s mk S- t % r t t ~ ~ ac-riom in 97 to m h improved p a f m c e wceieiwy for &mb a d d i s W . Thae s;re n ~ w m W wW&debatc: overtha tax ere& pky8 mt. But t!+Pate pofiq is fikay to amhue dong ~S Be.

Fwy-* of th& 3-70 w d d a with 'IF dktticts had $1 million or mom of the& 19% fax h e cap- tute?d bTIP &stxi&, All but 13 of t h a e w ~ p i s m i n b ~ m d 1 5 0 f f f i e m * l d i n K ~ i n C o ~ , The frve &a .ueith&&ghmtTIFrnbwm

@& milboll; Watk $6.8 ndlbon; and k v i & $5.6 mil- lloaThetopfowihwere.Ebe same as in 1995, hut Roseville rephed-.srstlzelmM*t tbis year.

Zn 1991 C3e9, Wlson s@ed mtiohSs fmt '̂- s&o@ law, malr- ing it posible for some on@ o t b b n &r; district m crea~,BxItmomQUs md accomktbb public $chwls f a kids to chow mang ~ h r e d* be.

Thm simply is no dwmtive to a palicy fm& m qt&~ and on pi2f-e timahgop&- tie8 em studttm w kmab incen- Wesfor dimikts. H m thtthetat ll%&s amk@ olw haw w&ly dktrict syam b s been to1 erst&) m d e n ' t f d ~ the old game of rndingmoneyforpro~is bbwn.

eatma 6 y we stuelc, dth ankxga- nimtlrn (the WdSwf i~se s u m h tro d@omt way d e p d s on Yr rh tbMcrnh lea rn .

Mat "I'iFta~ws made upjust 6.1 pmmt of the, pqmly taxm h v i d by all taxing ju&di~Eions in &e SMQ in lW6. But 7ilF -mat t k d k t & d m e off ~08t&d lzxbvelo* but tKmw being UWd tfx-my fw g m d pus0 impme* and~communi@ pjem-+m m i m p m m ofmtwua wbn w m a m v t h e x p m tm mmnw d cities wn& m ~ p s , the j&e- t i ~ W u s e T I F , ~ ~ T I F ~ were 36 percent a- as prr,per- $tm@s l e d in 1996 by all eitk wndm-s-&sm-tbr dl u ~ r p ~ ~ a s e s .

~ a n m s ~ a m $ L I P lmI E q . Ron Abmm @-Mill- ~&D&-~o has b@i% ~OII- , m e d about @xfmws in m--g,a a m - n t p - p w Ehis year &s an dbrnave @I TIF. Un$e~ fhe abatemmt progem, d e ~ e m pay their o m fqms- ee3,mtherhaxpebciyto ~ % ~ I c L % &velopwnt CQS,@ with box&. Then dtks-md m t i e s or other anits of g o m e n f if they eho-taldfm@~~ taxi@ on the b s e d value 0% the hvel- aprnent far a wmin time W o d School ~ ~ C P can abate Wtheir taxas m&r dw pr- but local

s--nC%r&-m pay for the abatementent

~ ~ e A e s m c $ f s Michael 9ctid the &la&amt pgrm will give l@5- h m al tnbmtiw to tto local ~ O ~ n t s Tvhenhy aak for apansims d TIF m for auho- rizatjanr)or~xlTn;projecbb 0 By 1895 f b poli~y

agenda b8d m v d to Bis- aasrsions abaut-g ~distrkt] seho& the unit

Don Didckxm* c e t imd lob- byist on tax ismw-tbr the Assacia- t%ondrnmWC&m,slaid w&m&aprefab-- etbillty hprawrnants of t h ~ abate- mentapproadl, W s nut the corn- phte w1ution.'" He h e e 5 pcedr;rral dEEdtim in getting $re various jusisr&ictiom to sign on gmthg ah-* and &B- culXy in sellrag bonds to pmwide ttpfiront a & m . % y g u m I s heentiwe to be pxid 08

s o m e ~ w i l l h t c t b worked mt,'* fie Mid

A l h g h TIF di&c& in €3lm&r Mnnmta imd to have less value, a n~~ of acmm conzmwni- &shave a larg&pmmtageof W ~ b a s e ~ d u p i n T J P & ~ ~ . I n 1996,107 w-tia had m m than IOpercentof&e.&k~base &inWW*75in m W ~ a n d 3 2 i n k mtm area m@mmulatn

TIF g r c m t b m t s o f ~ a z p t Ixtwmn L984 a d 1989. FoSIowing legislative mM&ons on the of m,~~~113,0Yvedtoto2lhouf 10 Ptef.0en.t in 1991; thme p t in 199;!andtwapr4t:geinl993.A mbouftd b c o n ~ ~ & f ~i~~&&+al valum and the le@sMve ea&g of SWB aidmhction p m * ~ in 1993 wd 19% laam I d to a m o b - m p a i n v d m c e b y T D 7 dimim.

for @US m S W . UIIdWthe neiW ~,%E&nillgaintaeffeGtfor taxes payae ia 199% the tax cap&& d a C-I ppsrg with & m b t v d u e o f @QQ,900 uillb S,BSO, wsvlth $7$m CW- ~ently.

aEh3-r a nea* Bw p m c a dedne in 1%. Most &the pa in die fricts w e out&de &@ metro

which saw a nearly seven per- ~ m t inmws 0 5 Qstxbts), wm- ~ & a n M m o f l a h m e pmmt @~w&tdcaJin&emo m,

Continued from page I &otemient. 91te!Mve

C m m m & ~ i v e d m i s - ~ B e o r o v ~ 0 f 'HFptmlpredthe bgitlame to smxt mtrbtiw on the pmgmain 1988, 1W5 1990 and1995 andtombatmabate- meatprogmn iB 1997 a8 dm- d v e tom. But ln 1993,1995, 19% U97 the IdgMafme

is expressed as a proportion of market value, depending on a property's use. If an assessor determined that a commercial property, for example, had a market value of $200,000, its tax capacity value for taxes payable in 1996 would have been $7,6&three Dercent of the

T h e ~ ~ i s t h a t e a o h u n i r d p v m m t make$ its awn d&- don on wh~@r to abate taxes; with TJF* city g%wernmmts m&a && &&ion to m e a TLF districti whi~:fi EtflkxtS; the m w stlmm of all the aher ovetlap@ng gev-

Thw* even thou& mar%& valm in ?'IF &trio& i8 projjsca;d to growgrow, the, lower t c a - o a e raw3 x&ll ~ & r n ~ ~ W t h i n n E t a x base, mid Nouse XbsawiB

The five c w * with the M - 7 - d tax base captured in TIF di&i~b we= Ired& TO- Crow Wmg Co~~1.tsf)~

first $100,000 of m&ket value and 4.6 percent of the remaining $100,000. So tax base, or tax capacity, values are only a portion of the actual market values of the state's property.)

Joel lvIichae1 ofrha; Mim~sota Rouse h ~ a r c h l3qwtmW 8kd stab pje~tions show that TIP val- ueawill"pw q&aabiP'inthe next fkm yam. But m m&at@ to that gmwrhvvig be therxbcti0~1~ pimedtbb IagisMve ms&q h the ra- at which c - a - i n : M a l {C-Q propetty is -v%luesI

& & F I Y E I B I ~ s o w - ~ ~ ~ dis- in 1996, wbde Eva commmii-

th &at bad di8f~i& in 1995 bad now in 1996.

TAX-INCREMENT RMAHCINQ, TAXI% PAYABLE 1994 'B6 TIF % W No, ai % % wptured ch8ittIpe QVW mzaur a$& nert % TtF distrlcto* over1= tPx npaoity change Ot39rVtal Wcta city

#-w area ~ ~ s z , & A l a 4.azS $213,.3$%,ni sei% 510 &%I& 0.79% $2,+?54~~2,r $5 5 ~ 6 % metro SO$XJ7,321 8.88 81 ,?I 4,760 a97 ?387 6.8 1 1,308&08,0&3 %.ll

- ,rewide 213;5?9,f 33 5.06 Z75*053,47f 3.62 1,391 4A1 3,~.lr,irnp~1 6.09 The numbex of TIF & s W with captured value gmw by four percent in 1Wtifkom 1,338 b 1,597-the seed year d

rndudw rm those dieMcts with captuped value, Th~f.1~ are an estimated 1,671 cert#fed TIF d i s t m tn the st&@, !ncluzllng tht-hose with and w#t~aut 2 capture ~alua. SDUl?@%% Miwwmh Dept, ef R-, 8t8W W W s ?3 fb

TIF value grew rapidly during the 1980s, with an average annual

1,671 e!atf&d Ta: tbfrirn in the

MINNESOTA JOURNAL MINNESOTA JOURNAL

Minnesota ranks sixth for combined effective tax rates Tax tidbits: Minnesota ranks sixth nationally in a comparison of 1997 effective tax rates for all state, local and federal taxes combined, according to the Washington, D.C.,-based Tax Foundation. Min- nesotans pay an average of 36.34 percent of their incomes in taxes, compared with the U.S. average of 35.15 percent.

Minnesota's state and local tax burden continues to be more equitably distributed among taxpayers than in most states, according to the Min- nesota Department of Revenue's 1997 tax incidence report. (The report uses 1994 income and tax data to analyze who bears the ulti- mate burden of each type of tax.)

Effective tax rates ranged from 12.3 percent for Minnesotans having annual incomes of $6,384 to $9,881 to 13.2 percent for those with incomes between $25,421 and $32,108 to 12.6 for the highest income group-those with annual incomes of $70,567 and above. -Janet Dudrow.

The University of Minnesota's graduate research programs are widely heralded for their capacity to spark economic development in the region and state. But the U's research machine is itself quite a contribution to the local economy.

According to the Office of Research and Technology Transfer, last year the U spent $304 million in sponsored research, training and public service expenditures-a four percent increase from the 1995 level of $293 million.

The federal government picks up the largest portion of the tab, at $223 million-mostly from the National Institutes of Health ($122 million) and the National Science Foundation ($30 million).

The fastest growing source of research funds, however, is private sources, like business and industry, associations, foundations and indi- viduals. In 1983, private sources forked over about $5 million-less than five percent of all research expenditures. By 1996, at almost $58 million, private sources covered close to 20 percent of all research expenditures.-Ron Wirtz.

Minneapolis is now going to build

Public policy shorts for long summer days.

some new schools. Last year Saint Paul opened its new Arlington High School. If you're scratching your head, wondering, "When did the voters approve that?', the answer is: They don't have to, any more. Quietly over the last 10 years the two districts got the require- ments for voter approval removed for most everything they want to do with buildings.-Ted Kolderie.

Congress and the President have finally put partisan bickering aside and passed a flood relief bill. One of the unrelated amendments that had been holding he bill up was an item prohibiting the Bureau of the Census from using sampling techniques in its year 2000 count. Republicans backed off and the final version of the bill simply directs the government to study the use of sampling.

Still, the Census appears headed for trouble. The U.S. General Account- ing OfEice (GAQ) earlier put the 2000 Census on its list of federal activities that are at risk of failure (Regional Reporter, March 1997). The GAO warned that the inability of Congress and the Census Bureau to agree on the methods that will be used may lead to an unsatisfactory and costly census.

Statistical whizzes-including the National Academy of Sciences- have been pressing Congress and the Bureau to use sampling and statistical techniques to improve the accuracy of the Census. A recent report from the Academy said that the decline of public cooperation has "contributed to serious under- counts of the population, despite increasingly intensive and expensive efforts to find everyone.*'

House members noted that the risk of undercount is high not only in urban and immigrant neighborhoods, but in ritzy "gated" communities, where access is limited.

At a February hearing of the House Governmental Reform and Over- sight Committee, Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney @-NY), said that if Con- gress underfunds the Census and if sampling techniques aren't used,

the 2000 count could be the worst this century.-J.D.

Right on the money: Add to the list another study questioning the use of the home mortgage interest deduction (MID) as a tool for encouraging home ownership, A study by the National Housing Institute indicates that the MID increasingly goes to well-to-do households.

According to the study, almost 80 percent of all households (based on tax returns) earning more than $100,000 claimed the deduction in 1995. Despite making up just 21 percent of all households claiming the MID, these households took home half ($29 billion) of this federal tax expenditure. Those earning more than $200,000-five percent of all MID filers-took home more than 20 percent of the tax expenditure.

By contrast, those households making $50,000 or less make up three fourths of all households, but only eight percent of them claimed the MID credit on their 1995 tax returns-a little more than one fourth of those taking the deduction. Their total benefit was only about $6 billion, about 10 percent of total MID tax expenditure.-R W.

It came in the late hours of the '97 legislative session and went quickly in a veto by Gov. Arne Carlson, but note should be taken that the Legis- lature has now, for the first time, given its approval to the election of the body responsible for policy for

Minnesota Journal Citizens League Suite 500 708 S. Third St. Minneapolis, MN 55415

the Twin Cities area: the Metropol- itan Council. As an editorial noted: B is an issue that will not go away.

The Citizens Lesgue of Greater Cleveland has just released its newest 'Rating the Region" report, which compares the Greater Cleve land area with 25 other U.S. urban regions, including the Twin Cities.

Among the intriguing findings: The Twin Cities ranked first among the 25 regions in the percentage of the population registered to vote-with a whopping 95.6 percent.

But actual voting patterns tell a slightly different story. The percentage of Minnesota's registered voters who voted in the 1992 general election drops to 75.3 percent, or 19th in the rankings.

Detroit and Seattle had virtually identical net participation rates, with 61.4 percent of eligible adults voting in 1992. But they got there by very different routes: In Detroit, 88.3 percent of eligible adults were registered to vote, but only 69.6 percent of those registered voted ' 1992. In Seattle, fewer eligible q adults registered (74.2 percent) but a greater share of those registered actually voted (82.7 percent).

Are the voters in Detroit more rep- resentative of the Detroit community? Are the voters in Seattle more informed?

And the hardest question: Which community ended up with better leaders?-J.D.

"Take Note" contributors include Minnesota Journal and Citizens League staf members.

PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID

AT MINNEAPOLIS MINNESOTA

MINNESOTA JOURNAL June 24,1997

a Citizens League Matters June 24,1997 News for Citizens League Members

/ Welcome New and Returning Members

Marcia Keller Avner Margaret M. Bau Loren Boyum Sherry Butcher-

Younghans David Christianson Elaine Collison Mary Lou Dresbach Philip C. Eckhert David Erickson Jeffrey Hertzberg Deborah Huskins Sarah A. Kraabel Dennis Kraft Linda Lindquist Michele A. Melton Charles Mundale Carole Mae Olson Robert J. Orth Jane Ranum Annemarie Robertson Barbara Sporlein

, Martha Van De Ven

New League study committee focus- es on the University of Minnesota

The University of Minnesota is one of the state's most valuable assets. There is con- cern, however, that the U's research and graduate education programs are declining.

National reputational rankings have shown that the University's graduate research programs have col- lectively declined over the last decade and a half.

For this reason, at its May meeting the Board of Directors unanimously approved a new committee to investigate ways of putting the University of Minnesota among the nation's top ten public research universities.

This topic stems partially from the report, Compete Globally, Thrive Locally, (1996)) which stressed that a stronger U of M was critical to the state's long-term health and competitiveness in a global economy.

The arrival of Mark Yudof as the U's new president also gives the Citizens League a unique opportunity to offer constructive suggestions to President Yudof, the Legislature and other leaders on the measures needed to improve the national stand- ing of Minnesota's flagship research university.

The committee will be co- chaired by current League Board member Jane Vanderpoel, research con- sultant for House DFL Caucus Research, and past president Carl (Buzz) Cummins 111, an attorney with the Workers' Compensation Reinsurance Association and former member of the Higher Education Coordinating Board.

Committee Charve

The committee will concen- trate on these questions:

What obstacles prevent the U of M from being one of the top ten research universities in the country? How can those obstacles be overcome?

What support structure is necessary for the U of M to improve its graduate research programs and facilitate greater economic development in the state?

Committee Process

The League has a portfolio of higher education policies from previous reports. For this reason, the new committee will follow an "action agenda" format, which will use previous League positions as a starting point for

the committee's delibera- tions. Therefore, certain policy positions - like access and institutional focus - will be established from the first meeting, and the final report will look for value-added rec- ommendations from this starting point.

The committee is expected to begin in mid-July, with a completion time of 3-4 months. Due to the short time frame, the committee roster will be capped at 30, half of whom will be hand- picked by the Board.

People interested in serving on the committee should see the application form on the back of this page. Applications for committee membership are due at the Citizens League office by Monday, June 30.

See reverse side of this

page for committee

membership policy and a signup form. The signup deadline is June 30.

Committee policy: Board seeking generalists One benefit of Citizens League membership is the opportunity to participate on policy committees.

Much of the League's repu- tation is based on committee reports. The quality of a committee report depends on the thoughtfulness and competence of committee members who make difficult decisions potentially affect- ing many Minnesotans.

Past experience shows the best committees are made up mostly of generalists, that is:

persons without prior involvement in the topic;

persons with the interests of an ordinary citizen in the outcome of the study; persons who would not be disproportionately affected by the study's outcome.

Most committees are formed through voluntary application. This, however, can sometimes result in a committee with too many members who have a special interest in the topic being studied, such as:

voluntary activists; paid lobbyists; persons whose employ- ment might be affected; persons whose living

environment would be affected.

While persons involved in the topic make important contributions to the study, too many persons with special interests might compromise the process and possibly the outcome. For these reasons, the Board encourages:

committee membership by persons uninvolved in the area being studied, who are willing to listen to all the facts, who are willing to ask difficult questions, and are open to learning about new ideas; persons with special interests in the topic to partici-

.pate in the process as committee resource gue?' or committee correspo. dents rather than as committee members.

The Board of Directors prefers to form all committees through voluntary applications. In the event voluntary application does not produce a balanced committee, the Board may:

limit participation by persons with special interest; require supplemental recruitment to produce a cormnittee with more generalists; appoint members to the committee.

Committee Signup: U of M in the top ten

University of Minnesota, please complete this form and return it by June 30,1997 to the Citizens League, 708 S. 3rd St., #500, Minneapolis, MN 1 55415, or fax it to (612) 337-5919.

Due to the short timetable of the committee, the roster to this committee is being capped. If the number of applications exceeds available seats on the committee, the Citizens League will randomly select members for participation from available applications.

Please check one:

- I would like to apply for membership to the committee (no fee; CL membership required).

- Instead of applying for committee membership, I would like to be a correspondent to the committee. (Correspondents receive notices and minutes of all committee meetings, and are welcome to attend, but are not voting members of the committee. The fee for correspondents is $15 for Citizens League members, and $30 for non-members). Enclosed is a check to the Citizens League for $ .

Home address

City, State, Zip

I Home phone I Occupation

Employer

Work Address

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Please circle preferred mailing address.

The Citizens League policy on committee membership requires that committees be made up predominantly of generalists who do not have prior involvement in the topic or a professional interest in the outcome of the study. Please specify how you are or have been involved with the U of M or higher education policy through your occupation, or personal interest. The Board of Directors requires this information to be pro- vided as part of your application.

june 1997 minnesota journal - citizens league · editors oppose tax credits, urge education...

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