Let’s Draw Up A Design For a More Efficient Government

Our municipal, county, state, and federal governments wisely use our tax dollars and spend only what is necessary for the public good …
Excuse me, I am sober now. I must have written that first sentence while riding atop a purple elephant through a field of Technicolor poppies.
The late Senator William Proxmire (Wis.-D) used to announce his “Golden Fleece” awards for government boondoggles and other senseless wastes of money. Proxmire is gone, but governments must cherish his memory because of their competitive spirit in vying for his afterlife judging. Specific instances are as abundant as bunnies in a lab testing the effects of Spanish Fly on rabbits. I reserve the right to comment on any of the other multitudes of wastes at a later date, but for now I will focus on one general occurrence.
Everytime a parking garage or a school is built, tens of thousands of our tax dollars are spent on architectural fees. No two are ever built alike. Not so with some fast food outlets. A great deal of money is saved because of uniformity of design. Why can’t this prudent practice be adopted, when applicable, by the people we elect to spend the money they demand we give them?
I realize that special considerations or specific needs prevent all garages or schools from being constructed exactly alike. However, our nation is large, and what suits Des Moines may well suit Charleston. Even if minor variations were needed, surely it is easier and less expensive to adapt than to start from scratch.
Instead of the leagues or councils of municipal, county, or whoever governments allocating and spending tax dollars so their members can attend informative conferences in Las Vegas, why don’t they hire a staff of architects to produce a recipe book of plans for garages and schools? The architects might already be on staff of some of the government entities, so there would be no additional costs.
My guess is that tens of millions of American tax dollars could be saved by this sensible suggestion. My money; however, would not be bet on its adoption. Councilpersons and legislators have shown little desire to conserve money when it’s not their own. Money not spent on one project always seems to be “needed” elsewhere.
I challenge the powers that be to seriously consider my proposal, and will be pleased if they do. I fear that if this proposal is indeed brought up in chambers of power, it will be regulated to some committee or Blue Ribbon panel. The odds of it emerging out of either of those unscathed by special interests are probably about the same as Amelia Earhart touching down next week at John’s Island Executive Airport.
James David Altman lives in West Ashley and has been a contributing columnist for several publications. He’s the son of the late former S.C. Republican House of Representative of John Graham Altman III. You can reach him at rabidreb@gmail.com