11.19.2009
Revamp state Constitution
York Daily Record/Sunday News editorial
The timing was perfect.
--- Last week, Attorney General Tom Corbett charged former state House Speaker John Perzel and nine other people -- including a Red Lion-area man -- in connection with the "Bonusgate" investigation. The AG alleges the powerful Philadelphia Republican and others used more than $10 million in state tax dollars improperly for campaign purposes. These charges come on the heals of indictments of Democrats in the first round of the Bonusgate probe.
--- This week, a group of "good government" organizations released a pamphlet called "The Citizens Guide to a Modern Constitutional Convention."
The publication was produced by The Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention Commission, composed of Common Cause/PA, The Commonwealth Foundation, Democracy Rising/PA and the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania.
OK, it's not likely to be as well read as, say, the book Sarah Palin recently, uh, wrote. It's a wonkish primer on the history of the state Constitution and an exploration of the debate over whether it's time to revise our commonwealth's central governing document.
It is time.
The Bonusgate scandal is just one symptom of a diseased governing system that apparently is incapable of healing itself. Other symptoms include but are not limited to: Midnight pay raises and pension increases for lawmakers, overly generous perks, bloated legislative staff, failure to apply the state open records law to the General Assembly, election rules that amount to incumbent protection programs, and on and on.
We need some change in Harrisburg. And the powers that be in the Capitol seem too arrogant and unwilling to change themselves.
It's time for citizens to take charge, call a constitutional convention and overhaul a government system that was tweaked in the late 1960s but hasn't had a thorough reworking since the 1800s.
The booklet released Monday lays out a good framework for how such a convention might work, empowering citizens to reframe government without undue influence from sitting lawmakers -- who have a vested interest in thwarting change.
This is an issue that has been debated for years.
In 2006, we ran a special editorial page series advocating "Re-Constituting Pennsylvania."
Sen. Jeff Piccola, R-parts of northern York County, has pushed for a convention to rethink the governing systems that have become encrusted with the rust of apathy.
But little has happened to make such a convention a reality.
Would it be naive to hope this publication, a thoughtful, statesmanlike approach to the issue, will provide the necessary impetus?
Probably.
But at least it's a good framework from which to start.
To bear fruit, such efforts will need support from the people -- from those thronging Harrisburg at "tea parties" to gripe about a litany of woes, from those who are exasperated with the culture of corruption suggested by the Bonusgate allegations, from those who look at our antiquated form of government and say, "There must be a better, more efficient, less wasteful way."
They need to speak out and demand a constitutional convention.
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