But a grand jury can do none of this; only the Legislature can. And only voters can install legislators willing to vote for change.
Still, there's value in airing these issues, and it's fun to see reaction from incumbents like Montgomery County Democratic Sen. Daylin Leach, a former House member, who just penned an anti-report op-ed piece in the Daily News.
I take it this is in lieu of lawmakers' smacking their foreheads, exclaiming, "My God, the grand jury's right! What have we been thinking?"
Leach, 48, is a smart lawyer with a well-known sense of humor, so I figure he was joking when he wrote that the grand jury's recommendations are "in many respects, dead wrong."
Really? You mean like suggesting that the sixth-largest state doesn't need the largest full-time legislature and staff in America, especially since that Legislature meets, on average, 100 days a year?
The National Conference of State Legislatures notes that only three other states - California, New York, Michigan - are full time. That means three states larger than Pennsylvania - Florida, Illinois and Texas - and all the rest somehow manage with less.
And since only a handful of leaders and staff drive legislation and decide budgets, why are 253 well-paid, well-perked lawmakers served by 2,800 staffers? No state has as high a staff-to-member ratio.
The grand jury cites testimony saying that half the House Democratic jobs are "superfluous" and that if House Republicans sliced their staff to what's needed for "legitimate" work, we'd save $11.2 million a year.
I call Leach.
He says that what's missed is Pennsylvania's lawmaker-to-constituent ratio, and he's right in reference to the 50-member Senate. Of the six largest states, our Senate's constituents-per-district ratio is right in the mix.
