| Show Sunset Laws One Answer Most Americans agree agree on the need to make government more responsive and accountable accountable account account- able to the public but finding fording the proper mechanism to move government in this going to be more difficult Sen Edmund warned Se- Se re The Maine Main Democrat suggested suggested sug sug- that One answer to this perennial dilemma of government government government gov gov- is a systematic reform that will change some of the basic assumptions about the way government works works- He referred specifically to S. S 2925 a a prop proposed sed law which assumes that there is no government activity activity ac ac- so important that it should not be be s subject je t to review S. S 2925 would terminate all federal programs and all federal fed fed- era eral tax expenditures every five years The rationale behind this m mandatory termination proviSion provision provi sion is to bring Congress closer to the results of C its legislative work Sen stated Only interest payments on the national debt and a few programs into which h individuals individuals individuals have paid in expectation of later compensation would not be terminated automatically The principle operating mechanism of the bill is the called so-called sunset provision which would make it impossible ble to reauthorize any program or or activity until it has has' been subject to to a zero base review by the standing congressional committees committees in in other words unless a case can be made that it is still needed The Tile legislation clearly endorses endorses endorses en en- the need to cut out into the base of a a programs program's funding level in order to better determine determine determine deter deter- mine th that t the most service is being provided for the least amount of money he said Sen expressed the belief that the proposal which he calls the most radical he has seen will pass because it offers a neutral process to focus our energies on the important important important im im- task of making government government govern govern- ment more productive This is an undertaking in which every everyone one of liberals us-liberals us liberals and conservatives Mike has Jike-has' has a Vital stake |
