From Booklist
The current budget deficit reflects a permanent fiscal crisis that requires profound changes in the way government functions, according to Osborne and Hutchinson in this follow-up to Reinventing Government (1992). A fiscal crisis is looming at a time of rising demand for public school funding, internal security, and health insurance. With the government at a standstill and using accounting gimmicks to avoid making real decisions, the authors offer sound advice: reverse the budget process so it starts with "results we demand and the price we are willing to pay"; cut government through strategic reviews; increase accountability; and use technology. Citing their own experiences (Hutchinson as former Minnesota commissioner of finance, Osborne from work with former vice-president Gore on the National Performance Review) and examples of initiatives from hundreds of localities, the authors look at what works and what doesn't and how government at all levels can make changes to increase the effectiveness of its programs, reduce costs, and deliver services. This is a highly accessible look at government and finance for readers of all political perspectives. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description
Government is broke. The 2004 federal deficit will be the highest in U.S. history. The states have suffered three years of record shortfalls. Cities, counties and school districts are laying off policemen and teachers, closing schools, and cutting services. Government leaders have patched together combinations of accounting gimmicks, on- time fixes, real cuts, and tax and fee increases to relieve the fiscal pain. But it won't go away. Overall, American governments from the White House to City Hall are enduring their worst fiscal crisis since World War II. But this time, the crisis will be permanent. On one side are skyrocketing costs for health care, Social Security and pensions. On the other is opposition to tax increases. In the face of this crisis the bankrupt ideologies of left and right offer little guidance. The Price of Government does. Whereas Reinventing Government, David Osborne's 1992 New York Times bestseller, was a manifesto for change, The Price of Government is a clear, step-by-step roadmap for change, offering concrete solutions drawn from the authors' combined thirty years of experience leading and advising public institutions. The authors begin by describing a radically different approach to budgeting-one that focuses on buying results for citizens rather than cutting or adding to last year's spending programs. They go on to show how leaders can use consolidation, competition, customer choice, and a relentless focus on results to save millions while improving public services, at all levels of government. These ideas have been put into practice successfully from schoolhouses to statehouses and from City Hall to the Pentagon. They are built on common sense, not ideology. The Price of Government will interest everyone who is concerned with how tax dollars are spent-and how to get the results we need at a price we're willing to pay.


From the Back Cover
"If you care about the future of American government, read this book. Under America's current economic plan, fiscal crisis is here to stay, and there is only one way out: We must fundamentally reinvent the way we spend the public's money. Like Reinventing Government before it, this book shows us the way." -Al Gore, Former Vice President of the United States "When I was Mayor of New York City, Reinventing Government was required reading for my staff. This new book should be required reading for those who serve the public in cities and states across America-and in Washington. Public servants should always remember that the money they're spending is not their own. Osborne and Hutchinson teach how to wring value out of every tax dollar, with a revolutionary approach to budgeting and a relentless focus on accountability and results." -Rudolph W. Giuliani, Former Mayor of New York City "As this book says, 'We are waist deep in the worst fiscal crisis since World War II.' Most politicians are so afraid of this mess that they hide behind slogans, gimmicks and blame to divert attention. Citizens want better. This book shows them how to get it." -Jesse Ventura, Former Governor of Minnesota "Houdini would love this book! Most analysts believe that American government is increasingly trapped between escalating costs and lower tax rates-a condition that promises frustration and hardship for decades to come. But now along come management guru David Osborne and his colleague Peter Hutchinson with ways out of the maze. Drawing upon the stories of innovators across the country, they offer hope that we can indeed learn to do more with less." -David Gergen, Director, Center for Public Leadership, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University "Mayor Hahn's use of Osborne and Hutchinson's budget process in Los Angeles really got the City's bureaucracy focused on outcomes and results in record time. It's a powerful tool that has changed the dull and dreaded budget process into one filled with creativity and innovation." -Morley Winograd, Marshall School of Business, U.S.C


About the Author
David Osborne is the co-author, with Ted Gaebler, of Reinventing Government, which made the bestseller lists in 1992 after it was endorsed by Bill Clinton on the campaign trail. He is also the author of Laboratories of Democracy and co-author of Banishing Bureaucracy and The Reinventor's Fieldbook. A senior partner of the Public Strategies Group, he has served as an advisor or consultant to Vice-President Al Gore, governors, mayors and city managers nationwide, and public leaders around the world. He has written for The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, The New Republic, The Washington Post, Mother Jones, and many other publications. He lives in Essex, Massachusetts. Peter Hutchinson is a founder and President of the Public Strategies Group in St.He previously served as Vice President of the Dayton Hudson Corporation (now Target Corporation); Commissioner of Finance in Minnesota, where he began his search for common-sense budgets built around results; and Superintendent of Schools in Minneapolis, where he led a dramatic turnaround in student achievement and financial health. As a consultant he has advised governors and their administrations in Washington, Minnesota, New York, and Iowa, as well as cities, counties, and school districts throughout the United States and internationally. He lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Overall, American governments from the White House to City Hall are enduring their worst fiscal crisis since World War II. But this time, the crisis will be permanent. On one side are skyrocketing costs for health care, Social Security and pensions. On the other is opposition to tax increases. In the face of this crisis the bankrupt ideologies of left and right offer little guidance. The Price of Government does." Whereas Reinventing Government, David Osborne's 1992 New York Times bestseller, was a manifesto for change, The Price of Government is a clear, step-by-step roadmap for change, offering concrete solutions drawn from the author's combined thirty years of experience leading and advising public institutions. The authors begin by describing a radically different approach to budgeting - one that focuses on buying results for citizens rather than cutting or adding to last year's spending programs. They go on to show how leaders can use consolidation, competition, customer choice, and a relentless focus on results to save millions while improving public services, at all levels of government.

SYNOPSIS

"If you care about the future of American government, read this book. Under America's current economic plan, fiscal crisis is here to stay, and there is only one way out: We must fundamentally reinvent the way we spend the public's money. Like Reinventing Government before it, this book shows us the way." -Al Gore, Former Vice President of the United States

"When I was Mayor of New York City, Reinventing Government was required reading for my staff. This new book should be required reading for those who serve the public in cities and states across America-and in Washington. Public servants should always remember that the money they're spending is not their own. Osborne and Hutchinson teach how to wring value out of every tax dollar, with a revolutionary approach to budgeting and a relentless focus on accountability and results." -Rudolph W. Giuliani, Former Mayor of New York City

"As this book says, 'We are waist deep in the worst fiscal crisis since World War II.' Most politicians are so afraid of this mess that they hide behind slogans, gimmicks and blame to divert attention. Citizens want better. This book shows them how to get it." -Jesse Ventura, Former Governor of Minnesota

"Houdini would love this book! Most analysts believe that American government is increasingly trapped between escalating costs and lower tax rates-a condition that promises frustration and hardship for decades to come. But now along come management guru David Osborne and his colleague Peter Hutchinson with ways out of the maze. Drawing upon the stories of innovators across the country, they offer hope that we can indeed learn to do more with less." -David Gergen, Director, Center for Public Leadership, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

"Mayor Hahn's use of Osborne and Hutchinson's budget process in Los Angeles really got the City's bureaucracy focused on outcomes and results in record time. It's a powerful tool that has changed the dull and dreaded budget process into one filled with creativity and innovation." -Morley Winograd, Marshall School of Business, U.S.C

Author Bio: David Osborne is the co-author, with Ted Gaebler, of Reinventing Government, which made the bestseller lists in 1992 after it was endorsed by Bill Clinton on the campaign trail. He is also the author of Laboratories of Democracy and co-author of Banishing Bureaucracy and The Reinventor's Fieldbook. A senior partner of the Public Strategies Group, he has served as an advisor or consultant to Vice-President Al Gore, governors, mayors and city managers nationwide, and public leaders around the world. He has written for The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, The New Republic, The Washington Post, Mother Jones, and many other publications. He lives in Essex, Massachusetts.