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COPYRIGHT 1989 Council of State Governments
Clarifying Purpose and Achieving Balance in Gubernatorial Administration
In running their administrations, governors are supported by their staff, budget staff, cabinet officers and the bureaucracy. Success is more likely to come when a governor clearly understands and defines the purposes of each and balances responsibilities among them.
Most governors are aided in administering state government by a gubernatorial staff, a central budget staff, political executives and bureaucracies. These institutions can serve unique purposes, embody core values and provide distinctive competence for gubernatorial administration. Governors have an obligation to understand these institutions and protect their integrity. More importantly, effective gubernatorial administration requires clarifying the purposes of these institutions(1) and balancing responsibilities among them -- the ordering of conflict among these institutions. The absence of order leads to inertia and disunity in administration, while clarity of purpose and balance among these institutions enhances prospects for gubernatorial leadership.
The observations and prescriptions offered here have taken shape through my study of the administrative functions of U.S. chief executives, including the governorship, the presidency and city manager, and my experience in three gubernatorial administrations, two in Kansas and one in Illionois. My understanding of gubernatorial administration was chiefly shaped by my work with two Kansas governors. I served under Gov. Robert F. Bennett from 1975 to 1979 as chief policy adviser and head of the governor's policy planning and research agency and under Gov. Mike Hayden from 1986 to 1988 as chairman of the transition team and, later, as secretary of administration and coordinator of policy.
The U.S. Chief Executive
An independent chief executive represents a uniquely American contribution to the practice of democratic government. States were first to have this form of government. Key features of the U.S. presidency were drawn from the colonies and state governments, most notably New York and Massachusetts. In turn, the presidency and governorships throughout the nation have shaped the modern governorship.
The framers of the U.S. constitution proclaimed that energy in the executive and unity in administration were the hallmarks of an independent chief executive. Many observers of the presidency and governorships over the last several decades might question this contention. Even with 200 years experience, inertia and disunity rather than energy and unity seem to characterized administration by U.S. chief executives.
Problems in administration afflict most U.S. chief executives, even those reputed to be successfull. Four of the last five presidencies have closed in a state of weakness and numerous governorships have suffered similar fates. In several cases, weakness in administration sowed the seeds for re-election defeat. Martha Weinberg, who served two gubernatorial administrations, questioned "why there was such a discrepancy between what we had come to expect from governors and what they actually are able to do" (Weinberg 1977, ix).
The nature of executive power spawns problems in gubernatorial administration. Executive power is vague and ill-defined. Most state constitutions declare "the supreme executive power of this state shall be vested in a governor" and empower the governor "to faithfully execute all the laws of the state." The open-ended nature of executive power lends itself to creativity and expansion but also opens the opportunity for confusion and error, trouble and mischief.
Many such problems may be traced to conflict among those institutions intended to aid in gubernatorial administration. Lack of clarity in purpose and imbalance in power among gubernatorial staff, central budget staff, political executives and the bureaucracies lead to inertia and disunity in administration.
Ordering of Internal Conflict
These observations...
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