GRAND RAPIDS — Lt. Gov. John Cherry, in a public gathering where about 45 participants got to vote on the value of the functions of state government, said that before elected officials undertake an effort to streamline or restructure state government, Michigan residents and officials need to understand what it is supposed to do.

Lt. Gov. John Cherry says that in order to streamline state government, officials must listen to Michigan residents to understand the purpose of state government. (Creative Commons photo by People for Cherry via Flickr)

Lt. Gov. John Cherry says that in order to streamline state government, officials must listen to Michigan residents to understand the purpose of state government. (Creative Commons photo by People for Cherry via Flickr)

Cherry, who has been charged by the governor with coming up with a plan to streamline government and reduce the number of state departments from 18 to eight, has called for a re-examination of the fundamental purposes of the state and embarked on a series of focus group-type public events where he is soliciting feedback.

At the second of these events, hosted by Grand Rapids Community College on Wednesday evening, Cherry, a Democrat from Clio, said it was helpful to hear from others on what the core functions of government should be.

“Sometimes when you are too close to the forest you don’t see the tree.” he said.

Participants at the streamlining government event were invited to used an interactive ticker system to vote “yes” or “no” on a list of seven core government functions identified by Cherry: public safety; education; public systems; well-being; sustainability; economic opportunity and prosperity; and effectiveness and efficiency.

The question-and-answer period of the event revealed a diverse array of citizens concerns about government, but in the end yielded few specifics as to a roadmap to realign Michigan’s state government, which is facing a $1.7 billion budget shortfall, just as Michigan is losing population, tax revenue and seeing skyrocketing double-digit unemployment, currently the worst in the nation.

Infrastructure projects such as road building should be more transparent, some said, and there needs to be greater recognition of the connections between environmental quality with economic growth. Some honed in on specific concerns. One woman complained of the lack of availability of tampons at highway rest areas. A man said that people should have a choice about whether to wear seat belts and helmets.

In appropriations bills considered over the last week by the House and Senate, lawmakers have signaled a desire to recombine and drastically reduce the budgets for two departments, Natural Resources and Environmental Quality.

Cherry said that moves to combine these agencies are “not in conflict” with his streamlining efforts.

The Department of Environmental Quality, which is responsible for upholding environmental regulations, has been especially targeted for cuts by some who argue that environmental rules are burdensome to business.

In a recent interview about his candidacy for governor, Republican Attorney General Mike Cox said that the DEQ is widely viewed as a “hostile occupying army,” raising concerns about how environmental oversight would be handled in a Cox administration.

Cherry, the presumptive Democratic nominee for governor, laughed off Cox’s “hostile occupying army” comment but said: “I think we need to ask ourselves what are these agencies out there doing as regards to conservation and the environment and sustainability issues, clearly define what that is and give them that mission. None of us has really laid out clearly what the mission is these departments should function. When we do that, I think it will solve a lot of issues.”

Audience members expressed strong but not unilateral support for the seven core functions of state government. For example, on the question of whether state government should provide for public safety, 5 percent voted no. One man criticized police practices such as car chases that kill people and another suggested that counties could take over some of the work of the state police.

Cherry called the Grand Rapids discussion “interesting” and “something we want to go back and take a look at.”

He said: “I think one thing we have learned is that some of the things we have described as core functions, some people think are more described as core values. We need to maybe go back and really focus in on what the core activity really is.”

Michigan Messenger’s Ed Brayton contributed reporting from Grand Rapids while Melzer reported from Traverse City.