State Secretary of Public Instruction Randy Dorn testified before the Senate Early Learning and K-12 Committee today against three bills which he said would leave him without any authority.
Senate Joint Resolution 8212 and Senate Bill 5522 would eliminate the Superintendent of Public Instruction (yes, that’s Dorn’s position) as an elected official and instead make it a governor-appointed position. A third bill, which is being proposed by Gov. Chris Gregoire and is currently being drafted, would create a new Department of Education, whose secretary would also be appointed by the governor.
You don’t have to know rocket science to figure out that Dorn isn’t crazy about any of this. In fact, Dorn’s animosity towards these proposals was evident the moment Gregoire announced them earlier this month. While Dorn said he was OK with the governor streamlining outdated offices to save money, he wasn’t very happy about having to report to a governor-appointed secretary. He complained once again today that it was unfair of the governor to take away his authority by changing the constitution.
“Education needs an independent, nonpartisan voice—someone who will champion it 24/7,” Dorn said. “That’s what the framers of our constitution wanted, and I believe it’s what our voters want. If the Superintendent of Public Instruction were appointed instead of elected, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now—at least not without making sure that what I say has been approved by the governor.”
Gregoire herself testified before the committee today, arguing that the current system was not working. The governor’s spokesperson Cory Curtis said that the main point of appointing a new secretary was to improve education, not to take a jab at Dorn’s work. Dorn said that an appointed Secretary of Education, which the governor’s bill calls for, “has no independence and can be fired at any moment. In other words, the ‘power’ is transferred to the governor. And it’s being done without letting the people decide if it’s what they want.”
“That sounds more like grabbing power, not decentralizing it,” Dorn said. “Based on my reading of the constitution, and at least one past attorney general opinion, the bill is unconstitutional. Because I am elected, I can say this without fear of getting fired.” Dorn said that the governor was using these bills as a smokescreen for avoiding real issues plaguing school districts, such as drastic budget cuts and teacher lay-offs.
Frankly, while I’m not pro-Dorn, I see this as a power grab by the Governor. Saying it doesn’t eliminate the position while trying to create a position to control the Superintendent rings hollow.
I have no problem with trying to get a handle on education and consolidating the various boards. But the Governor is messing with the Constitution and I think that should be a vote of the people.