House considers state employee suggestion award program; sponsors point to cost savings in other states

Lawmakers heard broad debate on HB5, a bill to create a state employee suggestion award program intended to identify cost savings across agencies and reward employee ideas.

Sponsor Rep. Stanley M. Smedley cited models in Florida, Michigan, Washington and Oregon, telling the House that similar programs yielded multi-million-dollar savings in other states and noting that implementation of HB5 was scheduled to take effect April 1, 1991. He described a program structure with a director and volunteer review board drawn from agencies and said awards would in part be paid from demonstrated savings.

Members pressed for fiscal clarity. Rep. Oke highlighted fiscal-note figures and asked whether projected savings would outweigh startup costs; the sponsor pointed to out-of-state experience and said the program should pay for itself. A floor amendment from Rep. Hill required the annual director’s report to include the "proposed budget reduction because of the savings;" sponsors accepted this as a friendly amendment and it was adopted.

Questions included board compensation and whether members would receive per diem (the sponsor said board service would be voluntary and uncompensated), and whether the program should be statutory versus administrative. The House ultimately circled HB5 for continued consideration and used suspension of the rules to circle the bill for further work.

No final passage occurred that day; sponsors indicated further deliberation and review of fiscal details would occur before additional floor action.