Today's Opinions

As legislators were debating Friday night whether to give final approval to a major revenue bill, someone brought up the old joke about how most of us would prefer to fund government: Don’t tax you, don’t tax me; tax that fellow behind the tree.

The most frequent question I’m asked when telling someone what I do for a living is, “What is the best thing for me to invest in?” It’s as if they are looking for a great stock tip that is going to catapult them into instant wealth. Unfortunately, these opportunities are rare and usually pure luck when they do occur. Your co-worker’s story of a friend of a neighbor who instantly went from rags to riches is probably heavily embellished with little to no fact.

The common thread binding all good legislation is that, by the time the actual vote arrives, the outcome is all but a foregone conclusion.

It takes a lot of effort to get to that point, of course.  Stakeholders need to be included early on, because they are the ones who will be most affected by any change, and the public must have the chance to weigh in as well.  It’s a process that can take months, but when it works, the positive impact is measured in years.