Reversing the "Political Putrefaction of Pennsylvania"; by Matthew Brouillette

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I once asked a member of the Pennsylvania General Assembly what percentage of legislators he estimated were interested in discussing and debating public policy issues. To my dismay, but not to my surprise, he said, "ten to fifteen percent...maybe." In other words, maybe 38 lawmakers out of 253 House and Senate members are interested in pursuing sound policy solutions rather than simply scoring political points.

The lawmaker continued, "When I proposed to our caucus that we bring in experts to debate and discuss substantive policy issues, you'd have been amazed at the negative response I got."

I know the politics-trumps-policy frustration is shared by my think tank colleagues in other states. But in Pennsylvania, it has apparently always been this way. In 1794, Alexander Hamilton wrote, "The political putrefaction of Pennsylvania is greater than I had any idea of." It is in this environment that we, as a public policy think tank, try to advance ideas that limit government and expand freedom.

How then, can we get our state policymakers to begin discussing and debating substantive issues? The first step is to do a much better job of demonstrating to policymakers that "good policy is good politics."

To this end, the Commonwealth Foundation has developed a targeted and strategic educational initiative to build relationships with members of the Pennsylvania House and Senate. Through this project, we take a more direct approach in educating and equipping the only group of Pennsylvania citizens entrusted with the power to develop and pass laws-the 253 members of the General Assembly and the Governor.

Our focus on cultivating relationships and educating lawmakers is particularly important for us in 2007 due to last year's historic election turnover in our General Assembly. We have a tremendous opportunity to inform the 55 new members of our legislature about the merits and viability of market-driven solutions to public policy problems.

One way we reach out to lawmakers is through a regular Policies & Principles Luncheon. These closed-door, legislators-only luncheons provide policymakers with a safe environment in which debate and discussion is encouraged. The event is held within walking distance from lawmakers' offices, but far enough away from the insular thinking of the Capitol. Because there are no staff, no media and no outside interests that might hinder a substantive airing of an issue, we create an environment where pointed questions can be asked and candid discussions can be held.

We bring in policy experts who effectively communicate the "good policy is good politics" message, and attempt to build coalitions of lawmakers to champion specific policy ideas. Past speakers have included former Colorado Senate President John Andrews, former Michigan Governor John Engler and former New Zealand Cabinet Minister Maurice McTigue, as well as policy experts from The Heritage Foundation, Reason Foundation and sister think tanks.

John Andrews has made multiple trips to Pennsylvania to help us push for statutory and constitutional limits on the annual growth of state government spending-this, in a state where Republicans in the 1990s grew state government spending on a per capita basis faster than any state except Mississippi. Even people who supported spending limits thought this was a fool's errand when we began championing the idea years ago. Yet, as John helped many lawmakers understand that this good policy was also good politics, the idea got legs.

Two different versions of spending limits legislation passed each house of the General Assembly in 2005. Although the proposals stalled last year, the idea has new life in 2007. Earlier this year, a majority of members in the Senate co-sponsored the Taxpayer Protection Act and the Taxpayer Protection Amendment. Additionally, Senate Republicans, who hold a 29-21 majority, have announced that they plan to restrain spending in the upcoming budget process to the index in the Taxpayer Protection Amendment. These developments did not come from within the chamber rooms of the Capitol; they are the result of our work on the outside.

Another example comes from last November. We held a luncheon in which nearly 60 attendees heard from Geoff Segal of the Reason Foundation about the potential leasing of the Pennsylvania Turnpike to help supplement some of our commonwealth's major transportation funding problems. Less than a month later, our Democratic Governor Ed Rendell embraced the idea, and we have been on the frontlines of that battle ever since.

What we have found is, when we are able to present information to state lawmakers through principled politicians like John Andrews or policy experts like Geoff Segal, the men and women of the Pennsylvania General Assembly who attend our events get inspired to lead.

The feedback from our policy-interested lawmakers has been tremendous. We've received numerous statements like this one from state Representative Dick Stevenson, who wrote, "There is no other resource where presentations on issues of the day are concisely put forward by experts in the field and open discussions are fostered in an atmosphere separated to some degree from the usual constraints of the press and politics."

Of course, only time will tell if our relationship building strategy has a long-term impact on reversing the "political putrefaction of Pennsylvania." But we believe that good policy will only become good politics when we have done all we can to better educate, equip and befriend our elected officials.

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Matthew J. Brouillette is president and CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation for Public Policy Alternatives in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He can be reached at mjb@commonwealthfoundation.org.