This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

Anytime a new governor takes over in Oregon, those of us in the political cheap-seats wait for announcements about a new sense of direction.

Governor-Elect Tina Kotek chose this week’s Business Summit in Portland as the location for her first major public comments since winning a hard-fought three-way battle for the state’s highest political office.

Here is how the Oregonian newspaper reported her comments:

“Oregon governor-elect Tina Kotek told business leaders at an annual summit in Portland on Monday that she will prioritize rebuilding trust, increasing accountability in state government, and boosting partnerships between various government entities and the private sector when she takes office in January.

“Kotek also promised to deliver results on three ‘issues of shared concern’ across the state:  Housing and homelessness, mental health and addiction services, and schools.

“We must improve the experience of Oregonians who are counting on us to deliver services every day.  Accountability in government is one of the primary reasons I ran for governor.”

Too often, the Oregonian says, “state leaders have declared victory after passing new programs or funding, then failed to ensure the public ultimately received the services or benefits that were promised.”

I agree with the Oregonian.

Making promises is one thing.  Delivering on them is another.

The latter often settles into the dust.

As a lobbyist and government manager in and around state government for 40 years or so, I could cite example after example of programs failing to deliver on promises.

Let me cite just one today – and I choose it, for one reason, because Kotek was not involved in it.  I prefer to give her a chance to succeed without posing questions in advance of her tenure.  Give her a clean slate.

The case I recount involved passing a bill to install a “pay for performance” approach to private sector foster care contracts,  It was a top priority for one of my firm’s clients, ChristieCare, which came to be called Youth Villages.

Here is how the director, Lynne Saxton, described the problem in testimony to the Legislature in 2011:

“According to industry data, there are 8,689 children in foster care in Oregon today.   For every 10,000 kids in the state, 100 are in foster care.  The national average is 57 and the average in Tennessee is 45.

“Stop and think about this statistic for a moment.  It is nothing if not sobering.

“On behalf of ChristieCare, as well as Youth Villages, the nationally-known non-profit organization with which ChristieCare recently affiliated, I want to go on record strongly in favor of this legislation, which requires the Department of Human Services and county partners to implement Strengthening, Preserving and Reunifying Families programs to provide family preservation and reunification child welfare services.” 

Through Senate Bill 964, it was Lynne’s way to call for a better foster care system, one that helped kids, not put them in increased jeopardy, which had been a huge blot on Oregon’s hyman services record.

Let me put it more simply.  SB 964 instructed the Department and private providers to focus on reducing foster care caseloads in Oregon, which had risen to the alarming levels listed above.  If private contractors did not succeed in delivering on their promises, their contracts would not be renewed.

What happened?

Nothing.  The legislation sits in Oregon lawbooks today with no result.

This is not Governor-Elect Kotek’s responsibility; it is just one example where Oregon state government did not practice what Kotek has now emphasized – accountability for performance.

Here are other highlights of her Business Summit remarks:

“The real victory doesn’t come until that working mom enrolls her child in an affordable childcare program, until an unhoused military veteran gets a home “and the student who’s been struggling to read knows the satisfaction of reading her first book.”

“The governor-elect said she will push her administration to ‘re-frame success,’ to prioritize results. and she will deliver lists of expectations to state agencies after she takes office.”

“Our entire state benefits when Portland is healthy and economically thriving,” Kotek said. Some Portland-area civic leaders have faulted Gov. Kate Brown for her hands-off approach as the state’s largest city struggled with rising gun violence, homelessness, and other problems.

A lot will happen as Kotek takes office after the first of the year, including her State of the State speech to a joint session of the Legislature.

It is not surprising to hear the governor-elect identify homelessness as a major problem.  It will be a challenge for her to find a way to work with urban leaders – especially in the City of Portland – to find a way through the public policy thicket of homelessness and housing.

Most of what has been tried recently has not worked, but Kotek did emphasize, in her remarks, that she intends to reach out to urban leaders to collaborate on potential solutions.  She may want to look in Salem where Church at the Park has been making some progress. 

A further indication of Kotek’s priorities will come when she announces her “Recommended State Government Budget for 2023-25,” a task the law instructs every new governor to perform. 

Good governors will use the state’s budget to propose the priorities they want to set for their Administration.

Will the new governor succeed?

One hopes the answer is yes.  Success will be good for all Oregonians, both those who voted for Kotek and those who didn’t.

No matter.  The time for campaigning is over.  The time for governing has arrived.