House Speaker Appoints Interim Committee to Study Ways to Improve State Government Responsiveness

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – House Speaker Tim Jones has tasked state Rep. Sue Allen with leading a group of her colleagues during the interim to look for ways to improve the responsiveness and efficiency of state government.

Jones selected Allen to chair the newly-created House Interim Committee on Government Responsiveness and Efficiency. In naming Allen to lead the committee, Jones asked her to closely examine whether Missouri’s state departments and agencies are effectively and efficiently meeting the needs of the people.

“Over the course of the past year the people of Missouri have lost a great deal of confidence in the state agencies that are meant to provide vital services in an efficient and responsive manner,” said Jones, R-Eureka. “From the scandal within the Missouri Department of Revenue to the ongoing problems with the Department of Social Services, we have seen multiple examples of inefficiency and incompetence that have raised alarm bells. I want the committee to perform a thorough examination of how our governmental agencies operate with the goal of reducing the red tape and improving the quality of service provided to Missouri taxpayers.”

Allen said her committee will begin their work by looking closely at the recent issues with the Missouri Department of Social Services. She pointed to a recent audit that gave the department a “poor” rating for its management of an early childhood fund as an area of concern. Allen also noted the department’s repeated failures to release information related to child abuse cases in a timely fashion. She said both cases are powerful examples of issues the department must work to rectify so that they do not happen again.

“The people expect and deserve a government that is responsive and accountable, but we have seen too many examples in recent months that create a troubling pattern of failure,” said Allen, R-Town and Country. “When you look at a department like social services that deals directly with the safety and welfare of young people, it is imperative that the system work as flawlessly as possible. There is too much at stake to allow the department to continue down this path of inefficiency and unresponsiveness.”

Allen added, “We will spend the next few months looking closely at DSS and all of our state governmental entities. We will do our best to discover areas where things can be done more efficiently, and develop policy suggestions for putting our recommended improvements in place. I am excited to get to work because our efforts have the potential to ultimately produce a state government that is better able to meet the needs of Missourians.”

Allen will be joined on the committee by state Rep. Jeff Messenger, R-Republic, who will serve as vice chairman. Other members of the committee include: Kurt Bahr, R-St. Charles; Kathie Conway, R-St. Charles; Gary Cross, R-Lee’s Summit; Charlie Davis, R-Webb City; Tom Flanigan, R-Carthage; Bart Korman, R-High Hill; John McCaherty, R-High Ridge; Mark Parkinson, R-St. Charles; Chrissy Sommer, R-St. Charles; Bryan Spencer, R-Wentzville; Pat Conway, D-St. Joseph; Courtney Curtis, D-Berkeley; Keith English, D-Florissant; Michele Kratky, D-St. Louis; Karla May, D-St. Louis; John Mayfield, D-Independence; Stacey Newman, D-St. Louis.