Policy Issue Guidelines for this Conservative
Here is how i think people should view policy issues/bills. Ideally, they would all be clean one topic bills with no unnecessary add-ons. Scroll down for Decision Criteria Section.
Problem 🠞 Goal 🠞 Methodology (How to Deal with Something) 🠞 Specifics 🠞 Follow Up
So, what does all of this stuff mean? This is how legislation should be written.
First you find a "problem" that need to be solved, then you develop a specific goal (like increasing spending by X%). A bill should focus on only one goal. Next you get into your methodology - your overarching way of dealing with the problem (how you will do it). Finally, you get into the specifics (ie what needs to be changed to accomplish your goal, how much, and in what manner should things be changed). After you are done, at some point, you have to look at the bill you made and see what the actual results are. There may need to be tinkering in the specifics if you did not get the results you wanted.
This in not continuous quality improvement stuff, but it is closer to it than the current congressmen use. Most bills seem to be "set it and forget it".
When Not to Spend
When should the government not spend money? They should not spend if there are running deficits or debt. Also, the government should not spend money because they have free resources to spend. It is the taxpayers' money that is being spent, not the government's.
One Time Versus Perpetual
This is about spending. Is a bill/program a one-time cost or a continuing expense? One-time expenses are preferred, but unlikely in government. Perpetual expenses (like programs) are playing with fire. Take pretty much any social program in the history of the US, the cost of a continued program has been vastly understated. You may not be able to scrap the program if it has been going on for a while.
Decision Criteria
Just for fun, here are some decision criteria i would consider on a bill. Maybe this is not criteria as much as things i would want to know. i had a list of criteria in my mind, but i'm struggling to remember them. Remember that congress is spending the taxpayers' money and has the duty to do so responsibly.
Cost
- Start-Up and Transition Costs for program or bill
- Operating cost of program or bill (broken down into yearly cashflows)
- Ending Cost: cost to terminate program/bill
- Hidden Cost: like debt interest, salary increases associated with program
- How is this funded: reliable method, general fund, how are cost overruns dealt with
- Who/what is covered by this bill
- Who/what should be covered by the bill
- Who/what isn't covered by the bill
- Why is this bill necessary (is it really)?
- What are you trying to accomplish
- Why are you trying to accomplish this
- Who will it help
- Who will it hurt
- What rights, if any, are surrendered/weakened
- Should this be done at this level of government (or is it a state/local/federal issue)
- One time or perpetual
- Threat of dependency
- Is there a defined out (way to end program)
- Is it really worth it
- Alternatives
- Will this add to the debt
- Is this a transfer program
- Is there a private alternative
- Does this potentially infringe on free market forces
- Does this have a dependency potential
- Does this limit rights
- Limited to a geographic region (not a fan)
- Multi-topic bill
- City, county, state, country regional limiters (as opposed to national policy)
- Named people/businesses
- Number of pages too high (100+)
- Expense lines without stated costs
- Racial, sexual, orientation type phrases (should be equality under law, not more equal)
- Existing laws on books/ Redundant programs
- Cost unrelated to purpose of bill
- No termination protocol/out clause for programs
- Any ESG type term
- Not clearly stated goals, scope, or methods to achieve them
- Private sector impacts (industries, etc)
- Foreign influence (like UN, NATO, etc)
- When it would take effect, for how long
- Is it a legislative/federal issue
- Other i cannot think of currently (if there are any)
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