Managing Cutbacks at the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services - Essay Example

97) affecting DSHS are as follows: (1) the program of reforms (cutting of expenses by 25%) instituted by President Reagan through the Economic Recovery Program; (2) Washington state’s tax system based on consumption and narrow economic base; (3) citizen legislatures that do not include potential leeway for increased taxes; (4) the increase in the state’s financial support for elementary and secondary education; and (5) state legislations ordering the recent cutbacks in spending for the last six months ending June 30, 1981.

These are formal mandates of the DSHS since these rules, laws, legislations imposed by the federal government and other stakeholders (education sector) dictate the organization to design strategies to meet these mandates. Through the Economic Recovery Program that instituted diverse budget cuts across all federal and state funding programs, all agencies being governed are expected to adhere to these enactments, as proposed. The tax system of Washington State has been focused on sales and business tax that contribute to fluctuating revenues depending on the economic cycle.

However, due to the conservative stance that persists, state legislators continue to support tax cuts despite the poor economic conditions that prevailed. There have been apparent favoring business establishments by giving concessions to deferred sales during economic difficulties which decrease state revenues while expenditures for social programs are expected to increase during these periods. The state opted to cut spending, instead, rather than increase taxes. On the other hand, the key informal mandates are: (1) no personal income tax; (2) shunned federal money; (3) advocated less dependence on federally funded social and health programs; (4) parallel spending patterned after federal grant funding patterns; and (5) the conservative