Governing.com: 13th Floor

Earth Out of Balance

2007-01-30T04:42:00-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

My son is too young as yet for school, but I already have the sense that kids are pretty heavily propagandized when it comes to the environment. It seems like all children go through a phase at some point when they come down hard on their parents about littering, or failing to turn off the lights, or generally wasting resources.

How will schools handle the biggest environmental question of our times -- global warming?

A district in Washington State was planning to show Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth to the youngsters, but ran into objections from parents who demanded balance.

When I saw a headline about this, I wondered whether this was based on the sort of skepticism about climate change still shared, reportedly, by President Bush, or whether there was some sort of corporate pressure brought to bear. Regardless, I instantly imagined how this could become an issue everywhere, with schools afraid of teaching the scientific consensus about global warming, in the same way they have to battled to teach Darwin.

Despite this, I was surprised that the angriest parent turned out to have objections not so much on scientific grounds but religious ones.

"No you will not teach or show that propagandist Al Gore video to my child, blaming our nation -- the greatest nation ever to exist on this planet -- for global warming," Frosty Hardison, a parent of seven, wrote in an e-mail to his suburban Seattle school board.

Hardison "is an evangelical Christian who says he believes that a warming planet is 'one of the signs' of Jesus Christ's imminent return for Judgment Day," according to the Washington Post.

Heads Up: 1.29.07

2007-01-29T12:14:27-05:00

"Grills Bill" would outlaw renegade tooth-bejewelers. Memphis Commercial Appeal

48% of jobless pay in error? Sort of. Wichita Eagle

MN lawmakers wonder, do biz tax breaks work? Star-Tribune

More states consider Electoral College end-runs. Seattle Times

Levittown, reconsidered. Newsday

WA Legislature to push for biofuels. Seattle Times

When Castro dies, the city of Miami's throwing a party. Herald

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

A Metric Problem

2007-01-29T11:17:20-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

San Francisco is an expensive city to park in. Even if you can find a space on the street with a meter, you could end up paying as much as $3 per hour for the privilege of parking there. Yet the city only averages $4 per day in collections per meter -- collecting only 22 percent as much revenue as city estimates project.

People not paying -- and not getting caught -- is one reason collections fall short. Another possible explanation, suggests this San Francisco Chronicle story, is the large amount of handicap placards, which allow people to park for free. The city has 23,000 coin-fed meters, while city residents hold 90,000 handicap parking placards, issued by the state.

"While the [Municipal Transportation Agency] supports the legitimate use of disability placards, there's no doubt that they have an effect on our parking meter revenue," Judson True, spokesman for the city's Municipal Transportation Agency, told the paper.

Undergrounded

2007-01-29T04:49:00-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

I've been to Underground Atlanta, the "premier retail entertainment center" that occupies six subterranean blocks of downtown Atlanta, twice in my life.

The first time, I was 11. It was 1991. I ate some rock candy, listened to a man play the saw, and came down with pneumonia. (These are probably unrelated events.)

The second time, I was 17. It was 1997, and I was on my way to an REM concert. At Undergound Atlanta, I ate a very bad hot dog and purchased a green candle in the shape of a buffalo.

The fact that Underground Atlanta seemed lame to me as an angsty 17-year-old is perhaps unsurprising. But even when I was 11 -- only two years after the ballyhooed relaunch of the retail development -- something about the place seemed stale and sad.

Well, anyway, Underground Atlanta has managed to stay afloat until now. But it's been on the backs of taxpayers:

Atlanta taxpayers currently foot the bill for about $8 million a year in debt service on $85 million in bonds the city issued to relaunch Underground Atlanta in 1989. Right now, the only money the city earns from Underground comes from the adjoining parking decks, not from its shops, restaurants or bars.

When the new World of Coca-Cola opens in May, tourists will be attracted to a different part of town, and the city's finance department predicts that Underground Atlanta will tank even further.

Creative Loafing, an alt-weekly in Atlanta, recently talked with several people -- including an urban planner and an Altanta city council member -- to hear ideas about what might save the beleaguered development. It's a really interesting roundtable discussion, which you can either read or listen to a podcast.

Photo via Flickr, from NicnBill

No Second Political Life for Newsom?

2007-01-26T14:34:15-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

Joining the ranks of former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has taken part in an interview in Second Life, the 3D online virtual reality world.

The interview may have been virtual, but it was actually interesting and kind of newsworthy.

For one, Newsom says he believes his prominent role in approving same-sex marriages in 2004 has closed a lot of political doors:

"I’ve basically written myself off of any prospects of running for any different office, and I certainly won’t be appointed by any administration or special councils because I’m a time bomb and too controversial. And I’m not just saying for Republicans."

Newsom also discusses Democratic presidential candidates, Linden Lab (which started Second Life and is based in San Francisco), and Dick Cheney's refusal to answer Wolf Blitzer's questions about same-sex parenting.

You can watch it here.

Heads Up: 1.26.07

2007-01-26T12:55:01-05:00

Study: Kids who live near freeways plagued with lung problems. LA Times

Dueling economists agree: Corporate kicker does almost zilch for OR. Oregonian

The Guvernator's declining physique (with Before and After photos!). LA Times

Lieutenant governors -- so misunderstood! Bismarck Tribune

WS WI schools might teach Hmong history. St. Paul Pioneer Press

Pensions betting on hedge funds. Chicago Tribune

Robert ~~Morris~~ Moses, reconsidered. ULI's Ground Floor Blog

Why short legislative sessions work well. Economist

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Guerilla Video, Gone Too Far

2007-01-26T12:30:00-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

Forget all those legislative issues to watch we told you about. The big issue in legislatures this year is going to be YouTube, or more specifically, guerilla video tactics at the statehouse.

The video pasted here shows why. It's from Virginia, the state that brought us the "macaca" affair last year. Apparently, Virginia Democrats learned a lesson from seeing George Allen, caught at his worst, broadcast all over the internet. Their takeaway? Shoot video of everything going on at the capitol. Eventually, you'll catch your opponents doing something embarrassing, or at least something they'd rather not have captured on camera.

According to the Washington Post, Virginia Dems have an operative scouring the halls of the legislature with a webcam. They're posting clips on YouTube and on a Democratic blog called Assembly Access. Some clips, like this one of Republican Delegate Jeff Frederick playing cat-and-mouse with the camera, are cheap shots that only demonstrate in the clearest possibly way why guerilla video is distracting and why legislatures will probably want to impose some rules on it.

Not surprisingly, Republicans are plotting how to fight back.

"Unfortunately, they are ratcheting it up, and we are going to have our groups respond," H. Morgan Griffith, the Republican House majority leader, tells the Post. "Both sides can play that game."

Ick. I hope the adults will step in and settle this scrap before it gets out of control. The Democrats say they're merely trying to shed light on how laws are made. Or not made, in the case of their videos showing Republicans killing a minimum wage bill in committee. There's something to be said for sunshine in committee rooms. But this is not the way to do it.

Sunshine can come with dignity, in the style of C-SPAN, rather than in the "gotcha" style of documentarian Michael Moore. Many legislatures already broadcast live video of House and Senate floor proceedings online. They should do the same in committee meetings. These days, the equipment is so cheap there's no reason not to do it. If you think nobody watches these things you'd be surprised. Some of the most widely-read statehouse bloggers routinely watch legislative proceedings from home and liveblog along with the action.

Politicians deserve to be scrutinized, not brutalized. Good people won't want to go into politics any more if they need to be TV-ready every second of the day. As Vincent F. Callahan Jr., a Republican delegate since 1968, tells the Post, guerilla video is "indicative of a culture of viciousness that is infecting these halls....You are going to get shots of someone picking their nose and using it out of context in the fall election."

Too Many Conductors Ruin the Trains?

2007-01-26T11:08:29-05:00

posted by Josh Goodman

Have you every thought about who's in charge of intercity train service in the United States? Hopefully not, because if you did, you'd probably end up with a headache.

Take the Capitol Corridor, which runs from Sacramento to Oakland to San Jose.

-Union Pacific, a private company, owns almost all of the tracks and operates freight trains on the corridor.

-Under California law, the Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA), a coalition of six local transit agencies, is in charge of passenger service on the route. These six agencies represent a total of eight counties, which each get to have two members on CCJPA's board.

-Since 1999, CCJPA has selected one of those six transit agencies, the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART), to manage the service.

-But BART doesn't actually operate the trains. The CCJPA has hired Amtrak, everyone's least favorite quasi-federal entity, to do that job.

-The California Department of Transportation (CALTRANS), which managed the line until 1998, still provides funding.

-Ombudsman and oversight responsibilities are handled by an independent commission consisting of James Baker, Lindsay Lohan, the Dalai Lama, Mr. T and Tai Shan.

Ok, so that last one is just a rumor. Nonetheless, this is a pretty complicated way to manage your train service.

In spite of that, the Capitol Corridor is considered one of the most successful intercity passenger rail services in the country. But the future is a bit murkier.

On California railroads and around the country, freight traffic is growing. In regional corridors such as San Jose to Sacramento, especially ones where state governments are contributing money, passenger ridership is up too.

The result is a widespread need for capital improvements, which is why intercity trains have such poor on-time performance. With so many parties involved, it's not clear anyone will see it as their job to provide the money.

Why Should I Travel to Your State?

2007-01-26T05:02:00-05:00

posted by Ellen Perlman

Most states have lousy looking or ineffective home pages for their tourism web sites, in one cat's opinion.

Smiley Cat's to be exact. Smiley Cat is a web manager for a children's hospital, who moonlights as a web designer. "You'd think that the official tourism web site for each state would try to show off its best 'assets' to maximum effect," he writes. "At least, I did - and I was wrong; very wrong in some cases."

Massachusett's, for instance, left him irritated. "What's up with with the mystery meat navigation?" Indeed, it's anyone's best guess what you're clicking on when you click on the "now" the "do" and the "go" words near the ever-flipping photos on the home page. As for Nebraska, why would anyone visit based on the web site, Cat wonders. He knows no more about the state after he arrived at the site than he did before. And he didn't think the "Agri/Eco-Tourism Workshop" coming up would be a particularly big draw for potential visitors.

South Carolina's color scheme left him cold. Was it a matter of "try anything and see if it sticks?" he asked. I especially had a problem with the rust-red typeface lined up right next to a block of violet. (insert shudder here)

Smiley Cat, who also goes by Christian Watson, grouped 15 states as "the best" and the rest as, well, "the rest." States from California to Kentucky to South Dakota made the best list. Watson doesn't make specific comments about all 50 sites. But states still might want see where they stand, in terms of aesthetics and effectiveness, at least in one "expert's" eyes.

Heads Up: 1.25.07

2007-01-25T12:13:47-05:00

States take up bills to oppose REAL ID Act. Billings Gazette

"Secret" UT legislation shows up on unofficial website. SL Tribune

In TN, a facelift for "monkey trial" square. Memphis Commercial Appeal

St. Paul targets "TV billboards." Pioneer Press

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Victory for the Louse Lobby

2007-01-25T11:20:55-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

The public schools in Oakland, California, have decided to drop their zero-tolerance policy against lice. Kids with itchy nits will be welcome to stay in school, even at the risk that they will infect their little (human) playmates.

Citing a policy in Western Australia, school administrators said that not sending infected kids home will encourage them to admit their problem and receive treatment. (That's always the first step, as any Lice Anonymous coach will tell you.)

"There are no serious health consequences or risks of students having head lice," Joan Edelstein, the district's health services coordinator, told the San Francisco Chronicle. "We don't want students to be missing five to 10 days of schools when they pose no risk of harm to themselves or anyone else."

The district's wellness coordinator, who is also the parent of a child in the district, applauds the move, delighted that she will no longer have to miss work due to lice. "Kids go to school with snot running down their face, but nobody sends them home," she said.

Something in the Aer

2007-01-25T04:51:00-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

This is either a testament to UNC business professor John Kasarda's awesome PR machine, the staying power of a good urban-planning concept, the ~~laziness~~ flattery of journalists, or some combination of the three.

Kasarda's concept -- which he calls an "aerotropolis" -- describes the mega developments that can spring up around a city's airport. It's a neat word to describe a fact of urban planning, but it's not exactly a new idea. Even Kasarda's word for it isn't new.

But that hasn't stopped a few major media outlets from recently jumping on a bandwagon that Governing was on six years ago. To wit:

Wall Street Journal, 1/24/07, Flight Plan: Airports Take Off As Development Hubs:

Airports are "the new central business districts of the postindustrial economy," says the University of North Carolina business professor.

Memphis Commercial Appeal, 12/14/06, Memphis leads nation en route to 'aerotropolis':

If you've heard the term "aerotropolis," thank John Kasarda... Memphis International Airport is the closest America has to an aerotropolis, said Kasarda...

New York Times, 12/10/06, 2006 Year in Ideas: The Aerotropolis:

Traditionally, of course, airports have served cities, but in the past few years airports have started to become cities unto themselves, giving rise to a new urban form: the aerotropolis.... “Access, access, access is replacing location, location, location as the most important commercial real estate principle,” Kasarda says.

Governing, 9/01, Freight Expectations:

"Airports have become the new downtown," says John Kasarda, a professor in the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who uses the term "aerotropolis" to describe cities such as Columbus.

Heads Up: 1.24.07

2007-01-24T12:19:21-05:00

Sorry Vegas: Macao is now the world's biggest gambling center. NYT

MN town bans ultimate fighting. Red Wind Republican Eagle

MS Gov. Barbour's insider status helped post-Katrina. (Ya think?) CQ Politics

NE bikers: "Let us ride without helmets!" AP

No court consensus on voter-ID laws. USA Today

Are TX bloggers real journalists? Texas Politics blog

Ex-DC Mayor Williams becomes a developer at last. WaPo

Tape your own SOTU rebuttal! Reel Pop blog

What's the fine for hitting a humpback whale with a cruise ship? Anchorage Daily News

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Embrace Your Inner Thirteen!

2007-01-24T10:32:08-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

We here on the 13th Floor embrace the fact that our offices are located thirteen stories above the ground. We love it! Bring it on, fate! That's what we say!

But it seems that some of the folks in Sen. John McCain's presidential camp are suffering from a little triskaidekaphobia.

According to the new DC Hill pub The Politico, McCain's presidential HQ will be located in a high-rise in Arlington, VA, on the floor between the 12th and the 14th.

But don't call it the 13th floor!:

The nerve center of McCain's 2008 campaign, the "Straight Talk Express," will be located on floor "M." The exact meaning of the "M" remains unclear. McCain? McFly? Macho Man? Whatever, but it's certainly a step up from the floor's original designation, an unlucky 13.

Come on, McCain, you were a POW -- don't be afraid of a little 13.

See Ya Later, Gas Tax

2007-01-24T09:24:35-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

So President Bush now wants to cut gasoline use by 20 percent. What's not to love about that?

Here's one thing, if you're in the state and local government sector. Revenues from gas taxes, which are levied by the gallon, bring in $35 billion a year for transportation projects. Lop off 20 percent, and you're down $7 billion.

States are already stretched thin on funds for transportation -- look no further than the current craze for selling off toll roads and turnpikes. Now the pinch seems likely to grow steadily, if gradually, worse.

What this points out is the great irony surrounding one of our worthiest environmental goals. Hybrid cars, alternative fuels and greater fuel economy are good things. But they also undermine the way we currently finance transportation infrastructure in this country. Add to that the reluctance of state legislators to allow gas taxes to keep pace with inflation, and you have a tax that is no longer viable for the modern world of politics and environmental policy.

States need to adapt. One interesting idea comes from Oregon, which is testing a way to use technology to levy taxes by the mile rather than by the gallon. Other states, such as Texas, see partnerships with the private sector as the way to get new roads built. Also, expect to see a lot more toll roads across the country, whether they're run by the states or by private vendors.

It's an obvious point, but one that American taxpayers somehow can't seem to remember: somebody has to pay for the roads they drive on.

When Tuition Freezes Over

2007-01-24T06:53:47-05:00

posted by Josh Goodman

Here's a hot issue in states: college tuition freezes.

Governors O'Malley of Maryland, Gregoire of Washington, Rell of Connecticut, Pawlenty of Minnesota and Schweitzer of Montana all have proposed freezing college costs in place at some or all state institutions. Lawmakers in Ohio and Texas are looking at the idea too.

It's no mystery why policymakers are making these proposals now. Tuition rates at public colleges and universities have greatly outpaced inflation in recent years. Many students have seen their bills go up by 10% or more in a single year, then rise by a similar amount again the next. Financial accessibility has long been a hallmark of public higher education in the United States, but, more and more, that's being called into doubt.

Elected officials would do well, however, to understand the root cause of these tuition increases: elected officials.

In the lean years for state government earlier this decade, higher education was a prime source for cuts.

From FY 2002 to FY 2005, the amount of state tax dollars dedicated to higher education increased by a total of 0.62%, not nearly enough to keep up with inflation and population growth (in '05 there were a million more college students than in '02). Only now is state support starting to grow again in a meaningful way.

While budget writers might have been right to prioritize core services like K-12 education and health care in a tough fiscal climate, they shouldn't be shocked that their schools responded by raising tuition rates. They also shouldn't be surprised that if they impose tuition caps without new spending or a plan to make colleges more efficient, the result will be a lower quality higher education system.

Heads Up: 1.23.07

2007-01-23T12:05:29-05:00

Is MA-style health care reform illegal? WSJ (subs req'd)

WA gov wants two more toll projects. Tacoma News Tribune

NJ/NY port execs say threat from the mob is history. Star-Ledger

IL puts its lottery on the auction block. NYT

Electoral-vote change gains in CO. Denver Post

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

More Wiki Wackiness

2007-01-23T04:45:00-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

Oh Wikipedia, when will you grow up?

The latest victim of wiki-vandalism is Philly Mayor John Street. A couple of days ago, it seems, Hizzoner's profile was nefariously edited to falsely say that Street had played Bozo the Clown on a local TV station. Thanks to Wikipedia's voluminous archive, you can see the prank here.

"I'm sure that isn't true," a Street spokesman told the Inquirer. "Wikipedia has had many problems with people sabotaging other people's Web sites."

Out of Fashion

2007-01-22T12:40:00-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

One of the states where the legislature has spent recent years arguing about social issues, arguably to the detriment of other policies such as budgeting and government operations, is Minnesota.

So it was interesting to see this Pioneer Press article about how issues such as abortion and gay marriage are no longer on the agenda.

At all.

Governor Tim Pawlenty made no mention of such topics in his State of the State address, and no legislation has been filed yet about them either.

I wonder if this trend away from such topics is happening in other places. I know they've been arguing about abortion in Virginia, for instance.

Heads Up: 1.22.07

2007-01-22T11:54:54-05:00

What to use for currency in a post-tobacco prison? Tennessean

FL's parking spaces for disabled can't meet demand. Orlando Sentinel

What's wrong with the Chicago Transit Authority? Crain's

Navigating the labyrinth of Utah's liquor laws. AP

Miami schools launch ad blitz to draw students. Herald

How's Bloomberg doing at running NYC schools? Economist

Exiled Californians are changing the Rocky Mountain West. Economist

Denver blizzard airport shutdown becomes political football. Rocky Mountain News

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Think Globally, Act Locally

2007-01-22T11:18:43-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

The city clerk of Evansville, Indiana, is urging residents to send in money for a worthy cause: shipping golf balls to soldiers in Iraq. Apparently, the American Red Cross sent 6,500 balls over there last week, but has at least as many on hand that it can't afford to ship.

"There are hundreds of guys over there, enthusiastic at the thought that Evansville, Indiana, is sending them golf balls," Alberta Matlock, the clerk, told the Associated Press. "I hope we can continue to do this until this war's over and all our people who are over there can come back home."

Spare the Rod, Spoil the Legislation

2007-01-22T10:19:01-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

A California lawmaker made headlines last week when she announced plans to introduce a bill banning spanking of children younger than four:

"It would get us out of the ridiculous situation of having our law saying there's justifiable beating of children," Lieber said, "in the midst of a society where we say we value children and protect them."

Meanwhile, legislators in Kansas are mulling a bill that would ensure that teachers could spank students without fear of a lawsuit, even though no teacher, parent or school administrator has asked for such a law.

Consider yourself up to speed on the recent developments in state-level spanking legislation.

Your Legislative Fantasies, Realized

2007-01-22T04:41:00-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

There's fantasy baseball, fantasy football and fantasy basketball. And if you scrape around the internet a bit, you'll find that there's even fantasy lacrosse, fantasy water skiing and -- my favorite -- fantasy curling.

Well brace yourselves. Now there's fantasy legislating.

The idea comes to us from the good folks at Minnesota Public Radio, whose statehouse reporters in St. Paul must be getting bored of their beat. Or more valiantly, as online editor Bob Collins told the Star Tribune, MPR is trying to get people "more engaged in the legislative process."

How does it work? According to the rules, 40 teams draft six legislators each. Your team rises and falls based upon how prolific, in a lawmaking sense, your reps and senators are. You score points when one of your picks introduces a bill (1 point), gets it heard in committee (5 points), pushes it to the House or Senate floor (15 points), and so on. The sliding scale tops out at 100 points, which you can only score if your player gets a bill passed, vetoed by the governor and overridden by both houses of the legislature. Huzzzah! Unfortunately for all of us wonks, registration for 2007 is closed.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by this development. Politics is already stuffed with lame sports analogies--horse races, slam dunks, moving goal posts and too many others. And obsessive number crunching is endemic to both pasttimes. Some people know from memory what percentage of the vote John Kerry won in Missouri in 2004. Others can tell you Albert Pujols' slugging percentage from the same year. In fact, I'll bet there's a good bit of crossover between those two groups of people, judging from a few sports/politics junkies I know.

Fantasy leagues are good for sports. In the era of free agency, rooting for a favorite team has lost its meaning. Pro sports teams these days are little more than groupings of overpaid strangers who happen to be wearing the same uniform. Star players are the real franchises, and the popularity of fantasy leagues only reflects that reality.

I'm not sure that this concept translates so neatly to politics, however. For one thing, as MPR openly acknowledges, there's flaws in the methodology. Making many laws does not necessarily make a good lawmaker. It's not unimportant. But constituent service matters. Social skills matter. Negotiating skills matter. Communications skills matter. You can't quantify these things. I'm not sure how many bills Barack Obama got to the floor of the Illinois Senate in his days there, but I do know this: whether you're a Democrat or a Republican, you'd want him on your fantasy team.

Still, you have to love any effort to make state government more interesting to more people. I hope MPR releases the results of this experiment. It would be interesting to know whether fantasy legislating is a brilliant tool for engaging the public--or if it's merely one more way for a few insiders to measure who's winning and who's losing at halftime.

Heads Up: 1.19.07

2007-01-19T11:43:52-05:00

Drug tests for elected officials? Portland Oregonian

Can Scientologists reform NM's prisoners? WSJ (subs req'd)

Can you make ethanol from trash? MIT Tech Review

McGreevey's ex-wife to pen tell-all. Inquirer

Hybrids beat SUVs in CA legislature, 38-10. LA Times

"Schwarzenkennedy." WSJ (free)

Legalize pot, says NH Rep. Charles Weed. (Seriously.) Portsmouth Herald

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Here's Me, Getting Mugged

2007-01-19T09:07:19-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

Crime-fighting in New York City just got a whole lot tech-ier:

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who built his fortune on innovations in information technology, announced a plan yesterday that will allow emergency 911 call centers and the popular 311 service line to receive digital photos and videos from callers.

The city will be the first in the nation to incorporate digital images into its 911 system, Mr. Bloomberg said, calling it a “revolutionary innovation in crime fighting.”

Cool, right?

“If you see a crime in progress or a dangerous building condition, you’ll be able to transmit images to 911, or online to nyc.gov,” the mayor said in his annual State of the City address. “And we’ll start extending the same technology to 311 to allow New Yorkers to step forward and document nonemergency quality of life concerns, holding city agencies accountable for correcting them quickly and efficiently.”

Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing, Baby

2007-01-18T11:50:51-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

There are musical groups that seem to have been around forever -- the Platters, the Orioles, the Drifters. One reason for their longevity, which we've written about before, is that the people performing under those names bear no relation to those who cut the original hit records.

"It's a form of identity theft," complains Mary Wilson, a one-time Supreme.

Every once in a while, somebody tries to do something about this. There's a bill before the Texas House that would block bands from performing under a famous name unless at least one of its current members were part of the original group.

This idea, as I say, surfaces every once in a while and then goes nowhere. I can't imagine it could be drafted in a way that's readily enforceable.

Heads Up: 1.18.07

2007-01-18T11:35:25-05:00

In Hawaii's Senate, the ladies are in charge. Honolulu Advertiser

SF bans booze ads from bus shelters. Chocolate-chip cookie odors still OK. Chronicle

Will Wall Street make a FEMA-backed loan? Times-Picayune

New Beantown fare boxes can't cut the Boston winter. Globe

N.O. still a hit with celebs. Times-Picayune

Mississippi voters claim racial disenfranchisement. They're white. Memphis Commercial-Appeal

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

...and Tinkerbell Transit

2007-01-18T04:54:00-05:00

posted by Josh Goodman

Only once every three or four blue moons do we receive an interesting press release through our fax machine here on the 13th Floor, but this one from Fairfax County, Virginia certainly qualifies. It introduced a new term to me: Peter Pan housing.

Peter Pan housing refers to homes built in a way that seems to assume their occupants will never grow old -- designs that prove troublesome because their owners rarely seem to be blessed with perpetual youth. Problematic features the county has identified include "entry stairs, narrow doorways or lack of a first-floor bathroom."

In response to these concerns, Fairfax is reviewing building codes and trying to increase financing options for retrofitting homes. Retrofitting is expensive, but one Fairfax official pointed out that having an elevator installed is cheaper than a year in assisted living.

Obviously, the aging of the Baby Boom generation makes this a big issue, but so does the substantial decrease in the percentage of American houses with only one story over the past few decades. As a result, a lot of places probably need to go after Peter Pan housing with Hook-like zeal.

Heads Up: 1.17.07 -- PART II

2007-01-17T13:35:06-05:00

It's a newsy day! Here are a few more headlines, served up fresh.

Nashville cops trade bikes for motorscooters. Tennessean

No eating behind the wheel? Salt Lake Trib

Louisville dog owners growl at mayor. Courier-Journal

Los Angeles may ban new pot clinics. LA Times

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Don't Mess With Nutmeggers

2007-01-17T12:25:45-05:00

posted by Rob Gurwitt

Last fall, my colleague Chris Swope reported on the Texas State Fair's bid to see how far culinary invention could stoop. You’d think the Lone Star State would be satisfied to rest on those laurels.

But no. Now it's messing with history. A state representative there named Betty Brown has proposed that the legislature declare Athens, Texas, the birthplace of the hamburger.

For those of you who have ever frequented a tiny brick landmark called Louis' Lunch, in downtown New Haven, Connecticut, you know that this would be a legislative travesty. The hamburger was invented at Louis'.

I know this because I grew up in New Haven and spent more time than was good for me downing vertically broiled patties of really excellent ground beef there. Once you're in the know about Louis' (I'll let you discover its fine points yourself, but all I can say is, do not ask for ketchup), you understand what tradition really means, however determined some upstart burg in Texas might be to steal it.

Fortunately, this argument doesn't have to rest on my own admittedly biased standards of proof. No less an authority than the Library of Congress also identifies Louis' as the hamburger's birthplace, though this is mostly because of the intervention of the congresswoman who represents New Haven.

I'll leave the last word, though, to John DeStefano, New Haven's mayor:

"It's a well-known and established fact that New Haven is the home of the hamburger," he says. "Of course, New Haven is also the birthplace of the cotton gin, the first rubber tires, the corkscrew, the Frisbee, lollipops, Erector Sets and pizza. We are even the birthplace of George Bush — who wants people to think he's from Texas. So yes, the hamburger is as much a New Haven original as President Bush. Get over it, Texas."

Heads Up: 1.17.07

2007-01-17T11:18:17-05:00

MD's O'Malley: From impatience to prudence. WaPo

A history of smoking bans, from Pope Urban VIII to Adolf Hitler. The Atlantic

Why does NV have such powerful labor unions? Economist

City looks to protect endangered insect. Mercury News

Iraq "surge" takes toll on local police staffing. Bismarck Tribune

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Gaffe of the Day

2007-01-17T11:04:41-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

Virginia House Del. Frank Hargrove is certainly efficient with his insults. He was able to offend blacks and Jews in pretty much the same breath yesterday.

In arguing against a proposed state apology for slavery, Hargrove said that, while slavery was reprehensible, he thinks "that our black citizens should get over it."

In trying to put his remarks in context, Hargrove countered, "Are we going to force the Jews to apologize for killing Christ?"

Um, needless to say, he's receiving some criticism for his remarks.

Googlicious

2007-01-17T04:30:00-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

It wasn't so long ago -- what, 2005? -- when Google would blow my mind, week after week, with new web toys. Just when I'd get over the excitement of flying to Dubai on Google Earth, they'd come along with some unthinkable new research tool. Like making entire libraries of books web searchable.

The tingles don't come so frequently anymore. Yet occasionally there's something new to check out, such as this custom search service, which I first heard about from Steve Rubel. What you can do with it is basically wall off a little corner of the internet that you're interested in and let Google search only those websites.

There's a few government examples. For example, you can search all California state and local websites in one place. Or, search the websites of the utility commissions of all 50 states here. Maybe that last one's not too sexy. But it'll sure help the next time I write about telecom or electricity.

Downtown MBAs

2007-01-16T13:33:25-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

Many cities are trying to attract college campuses -- or at least parts of them -- to their downtowns. I've written in Governing about how Phoenix has lured a biomedical campus and potentially 15,000 ASU students from Tempe as part of its downtown revitalization, and about how Orlando believes that having the University of Central Florida's law and film schools downtown will serve as anchors for a new "creative village" of professional firms.

The logic of all this is simple. Downtowns can use the young people for foot traffic and as shoppers, and young people are among those most likely to enjoy today's restaurant-and-retail themed downtowns.

Whether these will end up being happy meetings, or whether downtowns are in for years of town-gown adjustments and will end up wishing the students stayed on their sylvan campus enclaves, remains to be seen.

But I note that my alma mater, San Francisco State University, is moving its College of Business downtown. (SFSU is way down at the southwestern corner of the city, much closer to the ocean than to downtown.)

And not just downtown, but into a shopping mall. The San Francisco Chronicle story about this says right in the lead, the move is "an attempt to better serve more than 7,000 students, who will also become a source of shoppers for the newly opened retail complex."

And that's what education's all about.

Heads Up: 1.16.07

2007-01-16T11:29:42-05:00

The newest front in the War on Smoking? Apartment buildings. Seattle Times

MD's new delegates get ettiquette lessons from House's Miss Manners. WaPo

NM's Richardson wants a drug-dealer registry. Las Cruces Sun-News

Madison officials might be nation's first to protest gay-marriage ban in oath. CBS 5

How many benefit from Honolulu's new property-tax cut? Not many. Advertiser

ND's $20 traffic fines are called a joke. Bismarck Tribune

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

"If Only We Could Be Like Mississippi"

2007-01-16T05:13:00-05:00

posted by Josh Goodman

Residents of Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and other states have been known to remark, "Thank goodness for Mississippi," when presented with a 50-state ranking. They can usually rest assured that their state won't rank last on quality-of-life measures because the Magnolia State will be bringing up the rear.

For that reason, you can understand why I was surprised by one of the findings of the new report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, which conducted the first effort at a national count of those without homes in a decade: Mississippi has the fewest homeless people per capita of any state in the country.

In fact, the others that rank after Mississippi in the top five aren't exactly a who's who of wealthy states: West Virginia, Wyoming, North Dakota and Alabama. At the bottom of the list are Nevada, Rhode Island, California, Hawaii and Colorado.

Some degree of skepticism with this finding is in order.

Counting homeless populations is notoriously difficult. The National Alliance relied on counts by local Continuums of Care (CoCs), the entities that provide homeless services. So, if CoCs in some states did a better job than others, the numbers could be thrown off. The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development released a somewhat skeptical statement on the report, promising its own "more complete" analysis soon.

However, there is some logic to Mississippi leading the pack. Based on 2000 Census numbers, all five of the states with the smallest homeless populations, also have unusually low percentages of their populations living in urban areas (Mississippi ranks 47th and West Virginia 48th in this regard).

On the flip side, Nevada, the state with the proportionally largest homeless population, has the 3rd most urban population, a trend also seen in the other states with large homeless populations. This correlation suggests that homelessness remains a distinctly urban problem.

The report also broke the homeless population down into "sheltered" and "unsheltered" categories, with the latter being the most homeless of the homeless. Using the unsheltered group, Mississippi fell to sixth, with the top five states for small homeless populations being Maine, South Dakota, North Dakota, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania. The five worst: Nevada, California, Colorado, Hawaii and Oregon.

MLK Day

2007-01-12T14:57:00-05:00

The 13th Floor is taking off for the long weekend. See you on Tuesday!

BELIEVE

2007-01-12T12:50:26-05:00

posted by Ellen Perlman

Baltimore wants us to believe. It's just that I'm not sure in what. In God? In country? In ourselves? In a chicken in every pot? During a recent visit to the city, I first saw one of the black-and-white "BELIEVE" signs stuck in the dirt in a vacant lot.

I had a hunch that the sign pertained to more than that particular corner. That was confirmed when I began to see BELIEVE signs scattered throughout the neighborhoods. It got me wondering so when I returned home, I searched the Web.

A Christian Science Monitor story explains that every few years the city seems compelled to search for a new identifying word, phrase or logo. The latest, the BELIEVE slogan, is meant to make Baltimore residents feel better about themselves. The campaign cost $2 million.

In the past, Baltimore has been called Charm City, Queen City of the Patapsco and Nickel Town. All of which are better than the "Mobtown" moniker of the 19th century and better too, in my mind, than the 20th century Crabtown. I'm thinking "The City that Reads" didn't do all that much for tourism, and apparently got changed by vandals to "The City that Breeds."

It seems the "BELIEVE" signs haven't held up that well against vandalism either, getting changed to "BEHAVE." But there's a new mayor in town. I BELIEVE that any day now, there could be new signs with a new slogan.

Image via Flickr, from orderof_istari. Some more pics of Baltimore's BELIEVE campaign here, here, here and here.

Heads Up: 1.12.06

2007-01-12T12:35:31-05:00

New MD Gov. O'Malley kicked a field goal. Balto Sun blog

New IA Gov. Culver kissed his wife. Cedar Rapids Gazette

ID Gov. Otter wants to shoot a wolf. Statesman

NOLA Mayor Ray Nagin booed, blasted, bemoaned at rally. Times-Picayune

NYers can stop blaming the bridge-and-tunnel crowd for their traffic woes. NYT

Will Maine outsource its Medicaid billing? Portland Press Herald

Get on the bus, Thoreau. Why nature writers should pay attention to cities. Grist

Fun facts -- really! -- about the Oregon income tax. Oregonian

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Huckabee STOPS by The Daily Show

2007-01-12T11:13:54-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

To promote his new book, From Hope to Higher Ground: 12 STOPs to Restoring America's Greatness, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee went on The Daily Show earlier this week.

Huckabee was affable and funny, and the Daily Show audience (which, let's face it, isn't prone to like a self-described conservative, Evangelical Republican) really seemed to like him.

Here's Part 1 of the interview. Part 2 is after the jump.

Wholely Crist

2007-01-12T10:53:54-05:00

posted by Zach Patton

You've probably seen the headlines about Florida Gov. Charlie Crist's website typo, in which his staff accidentally labeled the governor's leadership group as "The Christ Team":

Fla. gov's staff fixes 'Christ' typo

Christ's, er, Crist's staff quickly fixes Web page typo

Gov. Crist given higher title, but just for a minute

But the best headline of the day -- by far -- is in the Miami Herald:

For Crist's sake, get the 'h' out

Mayor on Blogging: The Smartest Thing I've Ever Done

2007-01-12T04:46:00-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

I've been trading e-mails with Bill Gentes, the "Blogging Mayor of Round Lake" in Illinois. Hizzoner has been keeping a blog for about two years. And unlike a few blogging pols we've speared here in the past, Gentes writes pretty much every day and fairly candidly at that.

I thought the mayor's reasons for blogging were pretty interesting. He says:

I know of a few mayors who blog regularly and by regularly I mean 3 times a week. I know of no one as crazy as me to do it every single day. The comments are hysterical, you have to live here to get some of it, but I allow uncensored comments so I get the negatives, positives and the inane!

It is the single smartest thing I have ever done as Mayor, it allows me to control the dialog, it gives me the ability to answer my 18,000 residents questions in depth and gives me a way of going over the top of every naysayer and right to the general public.

Wither the City Manager?

2007-01-11T15:17:33-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

I'm sure all the city manager types among you have seen this NYT story by now. If you haven't, get reading. According to the Times, and I'm paraphrasing here, your profession is retiring out of existence.

The article also cites annoying local politics, low salaries and grinding work schedules as reasons why cities are having a hard time filling city-manager openings. As David Johnson, the former manager of Tecumseh, Oklahoma, who is profiled in the piece, puts it, “You can’t go to the grocery store, cafe or convenience store without someone telling you they have a leak in the front yard or a pothole in their driveway.”

Did the Times get it right? Is the job that rough? Are there fewer young 'uns going into public service to replace all the retiring Baby Boomers? Why? Let 'er rip in the comments. (You can remain anonymous if you have to).

What Goes 'Rounds...

2007-01-11T13:10:26-05:00

posted by Josh Goodman

Everyone's glad to hear that South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson is feeling better, but a few people are probably especially relieved: his family, his fellow Senate Democrats and Republican Governor Michael Rounds.

Rounds is the man who would have had to chose a replacement if Johnson had died or was incapacitated, with control of the Senate depending on the partisan preference of his selection. In other words, Rounds would have been stuck deciding between choosing a Democrat, and earning the ire of his party, or choosing a Republican, and being accused of using a personal tragedy for partisan gain.

But there's more going on than just that. According to D.C. insiders like WashingtonPost.com's Chris Cillizza and Roll Call, there's widespread speculation in Republican circles that Rounds will run for Johnson's Senate seat in 2008. That ambition, though, would have been complicated mightily if Rounds had to choose Johnson's replacement.

Just think what his dicey options would have been.

1) Choose a fellow Republican and then square off against the very person he picked in a primary.

2) Choose a Democrat and earn the ire of Republicans all over the country -- the people he'd be counting on to fund his campaign -- and then face the person he picked in a general election.

3) Choose himself and buy some flame retardant clothes to cope with the political firestorm he'd created.

Now he has the option of running a more generic campaign against Johnson or, if he's unable to run, another Democrat, perhaps former senator Tom Daschle or Representative Stephanie Herseth. Of course, he'd still have to explain to voters why he doesn't want to serve the last two years of the term they elected him as governor. That's proven a tough sell before, such as in 1996, when Nebraskans liked Governor Ben Nelson so much that they decided to pick Chuck Hagel over him for Senate to keep him as governor. (Once Nelson's two terms were over, he got his Senate seat).

This is all assuming Rounds would rather be a U.S. senator than a governor and, in truth, he probably wouldn't. As former Virginia governor and senator George Allen told the New York Times last year, ''I made more decisions in half a day as governor than you can make in a whole week in the Senate.''

Heads Up: 1.11.07

2007-01-11T12:58:17-05:00

NFL offers local officials Super Bowl tix. Miami Herald

New gov? Go after ethics reform! AP

Fewer eats in NOLA, but still enough for Zagat's. AP

The 21st century vote recount: Show me the source code. Wired

"Blight" spreads after Kelo case on takings. WSJ

Small biz learns to love higher minimum wage. NYT

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

STOP It Already

2007-01-11T09:31:00-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

I read outgoing Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee's book about weight loss when I was writing a story for Congressional Quarterly about his having shed 110 pounds. In it, Huckabee outlined a "12-STOP" program for ending bad habits and picking up healthy ones. Much of the advice seemed sound.

I see that Huckabee is taking the idea of running for president seriously, since I've just received his obligatory new book, From Hope to Higher Ground. Even though the book is about large societal issues, Huckabee clearly still is thinking inside the self-improvement mindset.

The subtitle of the new book is "12 STOPs to Restoring America's Greatness," including "STOP Robbing the Taxpayers," "STOP Abusing Our Planet" and "STOP the Revenge-Based Criminal Justice System."

For some reason, I don't see this book knocking Barack Obama from the top of the bestseller lists.

Gentrification Fight Takes to YouTube

2007-01-11T04:07:00-05:00

posted by Christopher Swope

This Old House it's not. But this video and others on YouTube, posted by preservation activists in Houston, does represent something of a breakthrough. The videos show residents of the Sixth Ward on their front porches talking about their old restored homes and how much they love living in the neighborhood.

The subtext: Go away developers. Build your stinking condos somewhere else.

It's a new chapter to a gentrification story that's heating up in a lot of cities as yuppies and empty-nesters rediscover downtown living. The fight has been particularly intense in Houston, as John Buntin wrote in Governing last March. These videos were produced by the Old Sixth Ward Neighborhood Association, whose president calls them an act of "creative desperation."

At nine minutes long (and with a distractingly silly soundtrack), I'm not sure if anyone will watch this video all the way through--let alone four of them. But it's an interesting new path for grassroots activism. I'm sure we'll be seeing much more like it.

So Much for Savings

2007-01-10T12:00:25-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson has put forward a crime-fighting plan that he says will cost an additional $85 million per year. Putting aside the merits of the plan, it offers further evidence that promises of savings through regionalism are usually overblown.

Indianapolis has long been considered a leader in regionalism efforts and Peterson has been attempting to integrate more services. In particular, he argued that city and county law enforcement should be combined. When he made this pitch in 2005, he said the combination would result in a savings of $35 million.

The savings, in fact, became controversial (4th item), with opponents wondering whether fewer dollars would mean diminished services. But Peterson prevailed last year, and the police and sheriff merged at the start of the year.

Not all of his new proposal goes directly to crime-fighting efforts. There's money for courts and pensions. For all I know, not having studied it, it may be a genius-level blueprint. The total cost, including interest, could be $1.3 billion over 25 years.

That does show, less than two weeks after the local law enforcement departments combined, the notion of saving money is already off the table.

Heads Up: 1.10.07

2007-01-10T11:49:01-05:00

Obama's got nothing on the vote for TX House Speaker. In the Pink blog

Plate tectonics are really gonna cut down on the SF-LA commute. NYT

Dusk to dawn in Chicago's Loop. Chicago Trib

A dragon and a wok in Chinatown -- racist? Portland Oregonian

Got a Heads Up for us? Email 13thfloor@governing.com

Where the Poor Are

2007-01-10T04:21:00-05:00

posted by Alan Greenblatt

Our friends at the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program have put out a study looking at where poor people live. It looks at growth in poverty rates and concentration of poverty by region.

The point that leaps out, though, is that there are now more poor people in suburbs than in cities. "In 1999 large cities and their suburbs had nearly equal numbers of poor individuals, but by 2005 the suburban poor outnumbered their city counterparts by at least 1 million," write Alan Berube and Elizabeth Kneebone.

They also note, however, that big cities were more likely to see big gains in their poverty rates than their suburbs.