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TERM LIMITS: GOOD OR BAD?
I don't know about you but I was in favor of the term limit ballot initiative that was passed by voters in 1990. At the time, I believed that there were many legislators who had been in Sacramento for far too long (starting with Willie Brown!). That legislators had nothing to fear from the voters and were becoming complacent and not listening to reason. I also thought that we could return to a more "citizen" legislature – where becoming an elected official would not become a career for political science majors. It would reduce the number of lawyers in the legislature. Finally, that term limits would produce a more moderate elected body. Boy, where did we go wrong! A new report by the Center For Government Studies says that term limits "have failed to achieve its original purposes and has triggered additional problems as well." – Duh! The report found that term limits has brought more men and women with local government experience to the Capitol, that most of them pursue political careers elsewhere after being "termed-out" and that legislators are more dependent on lobbyists and staff than they used to be. In addition, I would add, that the activity known as "nesting" has become prevalent: legislators start running for another office as soon as they are elected. There is a measure pending on the ballot that would substitute the current six years in the Assembly and eight years in the Senate with a single twelve year limit on all legislative service. If term limits are so terrible, why not scrap them altogether? Indeed, given the chance, voters probably would return the legislature to a part-time body according to the latest USC/LA Times poll. I'm not sure all the blame can be laid on term limits because there are other things that play in to the dysfunctional elected government that we have. Gerrymandering of legislative districts and political action "reform" have also contributed. I believe that truly restoring effective governance to California will require a complete systemic overhaul to align our policy making process with twenty-first century reality. Let's hope we see some action soon! |
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