Our
new President's use of executive orders to try to fulfill some of his
campaign promises, particularly regarding immigration, quickly ran
into trouble. Executive orders are a way to bypass Congress to
establish rules and policies by edict. The President can usually make
the order stick if Congress does not have a veto-proof majority, as
was the case for President Obama. But if the order is made late in
the President's term, a new administration can more easily reverse
the order than it can for those made years before. This is why
President Trump has been able to reverse several of President Obama's
orders issued within the last year.
In
Vermont the Governor can also issue executive orders An order will
take effect unless the legislature disapproves it within 90 days of
issuance. Disapproval by either body of the legislature, either the
House or the Senate, will invalidate an executive order. Governor
Scott issued three executive orders in January to expedite a
reorganization of the executive branch of government. One would move
the Department of Labor (DoL) into the Agency of Commerce and
Community Development (ACCD). A second order would merge the
Department of Liquor Control and the Lottery Commission. A third
order would create a new Agency of Digital Services which would have
responsibility for all IT services in the executive branch.
The
Senate took action to disapprove the first order several weeks ago
based on the different missions of the two organizations and the
possibility of conflicts of interest that might arise if the order
took effect. The ACCD is a business-oriented agency that promotes
commerce and business interests. It focuses on broad economic
development issues. The DoL on the other hand uses a case management
system focusing on individuals and provides job search and job
training opportunities for employees, administers Vermont OSHA rules,
and advocates employee claims against unfair labor practices. The
latter two responsibilities can be in conflict with the mission of
ACCD since the final appeal of cases would transfer from the
Commissioner of Labor to the Secretary of ACCD.
The
second executive order merging liquor and lottery was considered by
the House Committee on General, Housing and Military Affairs. The
committee was unable to adequately assess the consequences of such a
merger because the Scott Administration failed to demonstrate how the
merger would result in significant savings or improvement in customer
service. The committee found the order to be vague and broad and had
questions about how it would affect jobs and revenue. Because the
committee was unable to get adequate testimony from the
Administration, it felt required to reject the order and instead has
introduced a bill, H.525, that would establish a working group to
fully explore the advantages of merging these departments. The
resolution passed after considerable debate and over the objections
of the Governor, and the order will not take effect.
Finally,
the third order creating the Agency of Digital Services (ADS) was
assigned to the House Energy and Technology Committee. During our
consideration of the order, we were able to work collaboratively with
the Administration as both entities reviewed past successes and
failures in the creation and administration of the state's IT
resources and services. Since most of the IT is currently distributed
throughout the various agencies of government, an inventory is being
taken of all of the state's technology programs, personnel, and
equipment. To avoid disruption of the current work environment and
maintain continuity of service, the personnel will report to ADS
while remaining embedded within the agencies they support. Our
committee has asked the Administration to provide a timeline of the
fiscal impact, when and how savings will occur, and to be kept
updated regularly on progress throughout the year. The members of
our committee were unanimously satisfied that the Administration is
on the right track with this plan and believe that it will lead to
improved cross-agency collaboration and more efficient, effective and
successful administration of the state's IT resources. By not taking
action, we have allowed this executive order to go into effect as of
April 17, 2017.
I
encourage you to let me know your concerns and opinions. I can be
reached by phone (802-233-5238) or by email
(myantachka.dfa@gmail.com).
