Colorado Legislative Council Staff

STATE

FISCAL NOTE

No State General Fund Impact

TITLE:            CONCERNING THE CREATION OF A COMMISSION ON GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY.

Summary of Legislation

             *This fiscal note assumes legislative intent to provide no new state spending authority or appropriations to support the provisions of the bill. Therefore, no new spending authority or appropriations are implied for FY 1998-99 or FY 1999-00. The Department of Personnel will be required to shift resources from other programs to support the provisions of this bill. Please refer to “Affect on Existing Appropriations” on page 2.

            This bill creates the Commission on Government Efficiency comprised of 11 private sector members, the State Personnel Director, and the State Auditor. The bill prescribes the terms of the members and requires the commission to select a chairperson no later than October 1, 1998. Beginning in 1999, and for each year thereafter, the commission is required to meet not less than quarterly. The bill specifies the members shall serve without compensation.

            The commission is authorized to request staff assistance from the Department of Personnel. This assistance is to be provided within available appropriations. The bill requires the State Auditor to conduct an annual audit of commission activities. The commission is required to submit a report to the Senate and House State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committees on or before March 1, 1999, and each year thereafter.

            The powers and duties of the commission include:

            •   to conduct research of currently performed government functions, and government functions performed by the private sector;

            •   to evaluate and make recommendations concerning the appropriate functions of state government and to make recommendation as to which functions of state government should be performed by State Personnel System employees;

            •   to recommend new standards for government efficiency, evaluate the effects of such standards on the State Personnel System, and advise the executive and legislative branches to implement changes including changes relating to the selection of managed competition projects;

            •   to identify opportunities for privatization;

            •   to review and make recommendations concerning proposals from state agencies to privatize certain government functions;

            •   to identify specific government functions currently performed by the private sector that could be performed more effectively by State Personnel System employees and should be transferred to the appropriate state agency;

            •   to develop guidelines and procedures for soliciting proposals for new and existing personal services contracts from private entities and state employees to perform services or functions; and

            •   to identify and make recommendations to the Joint Budget Committee.

            The provisions of the bill will be repealed effective July 1, 2003.

            The bill will become effective at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the ninety-day period after adjournment sine die of the General Assembly, or on the date of the official declaration of the vote of the people as proclaimed by the Governor, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to Article V, Section 1 (3) of the State Constitution.

            This bill specifies that the Department of Personnel is to provide staff assistance to the commission within available appropriations. However, the department will incur additional costs to support the provisions of this bill. Therefore, the bill is assessed as having a fiscal impact.

Affect on Existing Appropriations

            The bill specifies the members of the Commission on Government Efficiency are to serve without compensation and the Department of Personnel is to provide staff assistance within available appropriations. This fiscal note assumes legislative intent to provide no new state spending authority or appropriations to support the provisions of the bill.

            However, this fiscal note assumes commission members will incur meeting and travel costs, and the Department of Personnel will incur administrative costs as identified in Table 1. These estimated costs are based upon the following assumptions:

            •   seven of the 13 commission members will be from out-state and will incur travel and lodging expenses at $99 per day;

            •   the commission will meet monthly during the first twelve months, and every other month thereafter for a total of nine meetings during FY 1998-99 (October through June) and seven meetings during FY 1999-00;

            •   the Department of Personnel will be required to prepare and conduct research including surveys and market-testing; prepare reports; staff commission meetings; maintain correspondence; and prepare meeting summaries.

Expenditures Not Included

            Pursuant to the Joint Budget Committee’s budget policies, the following expenditures have not been included in this fiscal note:

            •   health and life insurance costs, $885;

            •   short-term disability costs, $49;

            •   inflationary cost factors;

            •   leased space; and

            •   indirect costs.

Spending Authority

            This fiscal note assumes legislative intent to provide no new state spending authority or appropriations to support the provisions of the bill. Therefore, no new spending authority or appropriations are implied for FY 1998-99 to support the provisions of the bill. The Department of Personnel will be required to shift resources from other programs to support the provisions of this bill.

Departments Contacted

            OSPB              Personnel        State Auditor

            The Department of Personnel disagrees with the analysis provided in this fiscal note and maintains the expenditures identified in Table 2 will be required to support the provisions of the bill for FY 1998-99 and FY 1999-00.