MEMO
| To: | All Employees of the State of New York and its Various Authorities |
|---|---|
| From: | Carl Paladino |
| Date: | August 19, 2010 |
| Re: | Good Government |
It is my intention upon taking office on January 1, 2011 to re-engineer and streamline our State government. That effort will be centered on a complete review of every division and department of every agency and authority in New York State government to determine its functionality, productivity, efficiency, effectiveness, and necessity. Who better to ask for assistance than the civil servants who know the job(s) and keep our government working while our "politicians" come and go?
Where a function or series of functions are unnecessary in the 21st century - or are beyond the reasonable scope of State responsibility as provided in the New York State Constitution - we will discontinue that function.
We want to make it perfectly clear to all of the good employees of New York State that we are not looking to arbitrarily eliminate jobs. We will obviously target unnecessary exempt positions and non-civil service titles for elimination first. Any good employees displaced by our action to maximize cost effectiveness will be given the first option to backfill other State positions vacated by attrition. Good employees will not be left behind.
Please consider providing us with the following information:
1. Your ideas on how the productivity, efficiency and morale of your department or division and/or your own function can be improved;
2. What functions in your department are unnecessary, non-productive, inefficient, or ineffective;
3. Your ideas on combining functions within your agency or even with other agencies in order to save costs;
4. Over the years positions have been created and/or filled for political reasons to take care of a political debt or favor. These positions have been woven into the fabric of State government. The political employees sometimes enjoy very special privileges as to work responsibilities, perks and more. Please identify the names and positions of such people in your department and also identify positions unnecessary to the department's function;
5. Your observations on the lack of cooperation between agencies;
6. Identify people working in your department incapable for whatever reason of performing their functions at a cost productive level;
7. Identify people and positions of those working for the State as contractors after retirement - in effect, double dipping and depriving you of a promotion or another State resident of an opportunity for a job;
8. Identify whatever cost efficiencies can be brought to bear to increase the productivity of your department;
9. Provide us with your suggestions on the amendment or rescission of regulations and rules which are debilitating, unnecessary and an intrusion on private sector individuals and businesses;
10. The identity of any waste or unnecessary cost imposed on taxpayers, like unnecessary take-home cars, travel, expense accounts or redundant procedures.
11. Give an honest assessment on the cost effectiveness and the need for "outside consultants" who sometimes have taken over the very work that our civil servants do or did.
12. Identify supervisors promoted to positions above their level of competence - the "Peter Principal." Please trust that we seek only to improve Government by cutting out the fat. The same waste, fraud and abuse you see every day costs money and suppresses the morale of good workers.
We will protect the anonymity of all respondents. My attorneys and I will personally review all messages which will thereupon be destroyed and/or redacted.
Your cooperation in making New York State government more responsive to its taxpayers by creating an environment of lower taxes and lower regulation that will encourage private sector job expansion for our citizens, is appreciated.
Please submit all responses personal and confidential to Carl P. Paladino, 295 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14203 or email me at cpaladino1946@gmail.com .