Changes in process, but what kind?

Change has been in the wind across many government fronts for months. Now we are beginning to see more specifics begin to appear. Last week Governor Ted Strickland introduce a budget proposal that contains more than 2,000 pages. The week before that he released more than 1,000 pages of information laying out proposals for changes in state government.

On March 14, Governor Strickland delivered the State of the State address to a joint session of the legislature. This too contained a lot of language about change.

All these things are raising question. What should our state's priorities be? How should state government participate in setting these priorities? In many ways the campaign discussions that took place last year are an important part of setting the agenda for state government for 2007.

We are often reminded of the important truth: "The devil is in the details." Now the details are beginning to become evident. In the days ahead I will be calling citizens' attention to a number of issues as they surface in various proposals. There will be a lot to like and a lot to dislike for many who are concerned about our state. I look forward to this important work.