Sounder Editorials

Jeff Morris looks for alternatives to hurting the public

You may not agree with some of Jeff Morris’ ideas. For that matter, you may absolutely hate some of them. But we find it exhilarating that somebody in Olympia is proposing something new.

Morris, one of our state legislators in Olympia, is that rare bird who refuses to accept the notion that the only way to deal with government deficits is by cutting services and punishing the public. Morris is constantly thinking outside the box; he’s a virtual repository of innovative ideas. And we’re sure he gets plenty of flak for it.

Last year he proposed leasing ferries as a cost-effective alternative to purchasing them. Not surprisingly, the idea was scorned, and went nowhere. Unfortunately, all too often that’s the way government deals with proposals that represent alternatives to the status quo.

This year he is putting forward a far more daring suggestion — one school superintendent per county. (The state legislator’s plan states that those school districts wanting their own superintendents would have to pass a separate local levy to keep one.) You can bet the farm he’ll get far more grief over this idea.

Yet Morris believes he’s onto something, saying that it would save the state $100 million, with the money going for teachers, books, computers, etc.

He says that the private sector has long since devised a variety of cost-saving measures, among them centralization of administration services, and that it’s time for the public sector to do the same.

We honestly don’t know if his idea about school superintendents is a good one when applied across the board. Here on Orcas, Superintendent Barry Acker has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in local contributions for a variety of vital educational programs. It’s possible many of those dollars will be lost if all this fundraising is left in the hands of one county superintendent.

We know what Morris would say to Orcas if the people here argued for keeping its superintendent: “If your superintendent is so great, you should be willing to pay for him through a local levy.”

Tom Huse does the same, only in the area of solid waste

Tom Huse, director of the San Juan County Department of Public Works, is another who looked outside the box to put forward an idea that can save the county money without cutting services.

Huse suggested a new way to transport recyclables from Orcas and San Juan Island directly to the mainland. (His plan will allow Lopez to maintain its current method of dealing with recyclables, because that’s what the citizens on that island prefer.)

Assuming that Huse’s math is correct, his plan to hire Waste Management Inc., the Materials Recycling Facility (MRF), will free up $100,000 a year that can be utilized by the county to improve operations at local transfer stations without eliminating any county jobs.

Huse has taken tons of criticism over his proposal. Many islanders, particularly those on Lopez, feel his plan will kill a system they consider to be first rate and cost several Lopezians their jobs. Huse insists this is not the case.

These same islanders argue that the current system is exemplary, and therefore worth saving. Huse answers that, yes, it’s exemplary, but it doesn’t generate enough money to address the desperate need to improve solid waste facilities, particularly those on San Juan Island. Commissioner Rhea Miller acknowledges that more money will have to be raised to pay for the improvements, but we suspect that her solution, creating a solid waste tax district, will not be supported by the bulk of the voters.

Huse also insists that his plan won’t jeopardize recycling operations here in the islands. In fact, he believes it will have the opposite effect, because it will make facilities easier to access, and will make recycling easier because it will allow islanders to commingle their waste paper, glass, plastics, etc. Assuming that county commissioners side with Huse, we’ll get to find out later if he is right or not.

For now, however, we find it refreshing to see a state legislator and a county bureaucrat put forward innovative, “outside the box” solutions to serious financial problems, knowing they’re going to take lots of heat. The safe thing for Morris and Huse would have been to offer more of the same.

We need new ideas. Our government tills are empty. The taxpayers are in revolt, and the need to save essential services without raising taxes is greater than ever.

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