Who's bluffing? Reform must cut both ways.

PositionEDITORIAL - Editorial

COLUMN: IN OUR OPINION

Almost as soon as Gov. Deval Patrick announced further belt-tightening last week - and vowed that he was not bluffing about plans to cut some 2,000 state employees - the Pioneer Institute was out with a list of suggestions for saving the state money, from greater transparency in the compensation of employees to more expeditious disposal of surplus property.

The fact that these are not new suggestions is evidence of just how slow the state can be to embrace common-sense change that can translate to huge savings for taxpayers.

Leading the list is the repeal of the Pacheco Law. Enacted in 1993 with the enthusiastic support of public employee unions, the law suppresses competition and discourages privatization because it requires that agencies contemplating the use of outside contractors not only prove such vendors could do a job for less, but that they would save money even in comparison to public employees doing the job in the "most cost efficient manner."

Such a standard is both impossible to quantify and practically guarantees that any contract for goods or services can be retained by the public sector.

Among Pioneer's other suggestions:

Establish a sliding scale for public employees' eligibility for retiree health-care benefits, in place of the current...

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