Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Pleasure to welcome Governor Jim Pillen back to the program.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
God, good morning, Good morning guys.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
I hope you're having a great morning you too, Another
great day of Nebraska, great.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Day in Nebraska. It's all good.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Indeed, five hundred million you'd like to see kot from
the state budget, and if you slice it into as
you've suggested, your department has to find ten percent. That
seems more doable to me than just a flat five
hundred million. But it's still not easy, is it. Do
you think I can get done?
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Well, there's no question it can get done. We've been
working hard on it, really almost since day one, with
a focus of having cabinet members that believe have cabinet
members that believe in being fiscally conservative and focus on
what's needed, not what's nice. We've got a great team
of people, and we've got people that have common sense.
(00:57):
We have people that want make a great impact, and
they're extraordinary public servants. You know, early on people said, well, Pilling,
you'll they'll have quite a time dealing with bureaucrats. We've
got great public servants and you know, we're focused on
making an impact common sense. We've talked from day one.
(01:18):
We can run government like a business. We can improve quality,
we can improve throughput. When you improve services, you decrease costs.
So you know, in business, a ten percent decrease is
no big deal. Yeah. Is it easy? No? Does anybody
like doing it?
Speaker 1 (01:36):
No?
Speaker 2 (01:37):
But that's what our responsibility is. To have transformative tax change,
which we need in this state. Somebody's got quit spending
money in the government, and that's what we're working on
very hard.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Jim, three bills, DHS University K through twelve education. That
is ninety percent of the Nebraska budget. That's where you're
going to get your five hundred millions. Which of those
three oxes gets gored?
Speaker 2 (02:04):
You know, I don't think, Yeah, I don't think I
want to use the word gord anywhere. I think what
we're working very hard on is doing lots of precision.
We have opportunities, We have opportunities everywhere. Obviously, we have
to shrink government. That means we're going to decrease you know,
they're I have not met anyone yet that does not
(02:28):
want to do business with government. What's that tell you?
And we have to do better with contracts. I'm tired
of seeing contracts that have nothing but activities and activities
and conversations and conversations, but no measurable outcomes. So that's
what we're working on. We're focused on doing the correct measurements,
(02:51):
making sure that we're focused on the end user, making
sure that we're focused on getting services to kids, and
not having a whole bunch of box checkers because they
don't provide any service to anybody.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
So there's five hundred million you think just in bureaucratic
red tape.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Yeah. Yeah, let's just use a couple examples. If you
if you go after the wrong thing, you know, you
get it. FTEs want to shrink the number of FTEs. Well,
FTS is you know, you shrink government by what the
bottom line, what your costs, what your spend is. Uh so, yeah,
(03:34):
we decreased FTS, but we increase our costs because we
use contractors. We're eliminating contractors in every department because they
cost two and a half times but what people need
to do the job. And obviously there's a whole bunch
of things that we've been doing that aren't providing service
to the end users. So you know, we're stopping those things.
(03:56):
And and then and then just really really simple things
like like run the lamb who runs our Department of
Motor Vehicles. And if there'd be anybody that she's been
a part of the state for forty two years, it
would say, killing you're you're a nut job. I've been
here out last year.
Speaker 1 (04:12):
You know.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
She said, this is incredible. Our team is inspired. And
they took waiting lists from thirty seven or forty minutes
down to five minutes, you know. And oh, by the way,
you know, we got to run government like a business.
Insurance companies get this one. Insurance companies pay for data
(04:34):
across the country, and you get a ton of data
from the Department of Motor Vehicles. Guess where we ranked
in the fees. We charged the bottom ten percent of
the country for crying out loud. So those are just
there's just there's just opportunities at every turn.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
Nobody don't pay enough fees.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
Oh we don't charge contractors enough fees.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yeah, yeah, insurance companies what you know, I mean, holy cow,
that's just doing business. That's not so those are those
are great, great opportunities, you know, And there's been uh,
you know, mental middle management'sman cut. We've we've had wins
in the first two and a half years. But uh, one,
it takes a while to get the culture, It takes
time to get the belief it gets, takes time to
(05:20):
get the understanding of what we call a system's approach
to doing business, and uh, you know it's time to
bring the bacon home, if you will.
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Now one other thing, when you were first in office,
you ordered a performance audit by I believe a woman
from Utah or a firm out of Utah. Yeah, what
what happened? What did they find? What did we ever
see a report on that? And how much does she
find it safe?
Speaker 2 (05:43):
Yeah? So we're still uh, Epiphany is here at least
half the time, working in different departments and continuing to
work with all of our cabinet members and senior leadership
in every cabinet. And that's the uh, the approach of
you know, everyone learning what a system's approach. Because if
(06:04):
you've got a system's approach is really simple. If you've
got ten people in a process to have an outcome
to help a child, and there's two in the in
two of the ten that don't fully understand what they're
supposed to be doing, and they're performing at a level
of three out on a scale of ten. Well they've
messed the whole thing up. Everybody can be doing great work,
(06:24):
but if one or two are off, the whole thing
is so you know, those are things we've been working on.
And it really, it really wasn't an audit. It's a
it's a Chris and John and Hurt their team. They
they're helping everybody learn how to operate government like a
business and have have tangible outcomes. I have yet to
(06:47):
meet a human being that, with the proper leadership doesn't
want to do great things. And yeah, we've had great
attitude andal change, working hard for Nebraskans and yeah, it's seriously,
people that have not been in business thinks that's gigantic.
You know, it's not. Do you like to eliminate positions? No,
(07:08):
you love to grow stuff, but government is not the
place to grow. That's what our economy is supposed to do,
That's what private enterprise is supposed to do. We need
to start saying way more knows, way more knows to
do in business, way less contracts, focus on the things
that are really needed, and then get government out of
(07:29):
our hair of the rooms.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Love to have another conversation Governor about revenue generation too,
but that'll wait for another day. Thanks so much for
coming on this morning. Appreciate time.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Hey, great to be on things for all you guys
do have a great day.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
You bet. Nebraska Governor Jim Pilling here on kfab's morning
news
Pleasure to welcome Governor Jim Pillen back to the program.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
God, good morning, Good morning guys.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
I hope you're having a great morning you too, Another
great day of Nebraska, great.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Day in Nebraska. It's all good.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Indeed, five hundred million you'd like to see kot from
the state budget, and if you slice it into as
you've suggested, your department has to find ten percent. That
seems more doable to me than just a flat five
hundred million. But it's still not easy, is it. Do
you think I can get done?
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Well, there's no question it can get done. We've been
working hard on it, really almost since day one, with
a focus of having cabinet members that believe have cabinet
members that believe in being fiscally conservative and focus on
what's needed, not what's nice. We've got a great team
of people, and we've got people that have common sense.
(00:57):
We have people that want make a great impact, and
they're extraordinary public servants. You know, early on people said, well, Pilling,
you'll they'll have quite a time dealing with bureaucrats. We've
got great public servants and you know, we're focused on
making an impact common sense. We've talked from day one.
(01:18):
We can run government like a business. We can improve quality,
we can improve throughput. When you improve services, you decrease costs.
So you know, in business, a ten percent decrease is
no big deal. Yeah. Is it easy? No? Does anybody
like doing it?
Speaker 1 (01:36):
No?
Speaker 2 (01:37):
But that's what our responsibility is. To have transformative tax change,
which we need in this state. Somebody's got quit spending
money in the government, and that's what we're working on
very hard.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Jim, three bills, DHS University K through twelve education. That
is ninety percent of the Nebraska budget. That's where you're
going to get your five hundred millions. Which of those
three oxes gets gored?
Speaker 2 (02:04):
You know, I don't think, Yeah, I don't think I
want to use the word gord anywhere. I think what
we're working very hard on is doing lots of precision.
We have opportunities, We have opportunities everywhere. Obviously, we have
to shrink government. That means we're going to decrease you know,
they're I have not met anyone yet that does not
(02:28):
want to do business with government. What's that tell you?
And we have to do better with contracts. I'm tired
of seeing contracts that have nothing but activities and activities
and conversations and conversations, but no measurable outcomes. So that's
what we're working on. We're focused on doing the correct measurements,
(02:51):
making sure that we're focused on the end user, making
sure that we're focused on getting services to kids, and
not having a whole bunch of box checkers because they
don't provide any service to anybody.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
So there's five hundred million you think just in bureaucratic
red tape.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Yeah. Yeah, let's just use a couple examples. If you
if you go after the wrong thing, you know, you
get it. FTEs want to shrink the number of FTEs. Well,
FTS is you know, you shrink government by what the
bottom line, what your costs, what your spend is. Uh so, yeah,
(03:34):
we decreased FTS, but we increase our costs because we
use contractors. We're eliminating contractors in every department because they
cost two and a half times but what people need
to do the job. And obviously there's a whole bunch
of things that we've been doing that aren't providing service
to the end users. So you know, we're stopping those things.
(03:56):
And and then and then just really really simple things
like like run the lamb who runs our Department of
Motor Vehicles. And if there'd be anybody that she's been
a part of the state for forty two years, it
would say, killing you're you're a nut job. I've been
here out last year.
Speaker 1 (04:12):
You know.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
She said, this is incredible. Our team is inspired. And
they took waiting lists from thirty seven or forty minutes
down to five minutes, you know. And oh, by the way,
you know, we got to run government like a business.
Insurance companies get this one. Insurance companies pay for data
(04:34):
across the country, and you get a ton of data
from the Department of Motor Vehicles. Guess where we ranked
in the fees. We charged the bottom ten percent of
the country for crying out loud. So those are just
there's just there's just opportunities at every turn.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
Nobody don't pay enough fees.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
Oh we don't charge contractors enough fees.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yeah, yeah, insurance companies what you know, I mean, holy cow,
that's just doing business. That's not so those are those
are great, great opportunities, you know, And there's been uh,
you know, mental middle management'sman cut. We've we've had wins
in the first two and a half years. But uh, one,
it takes a while to get the culture, It takes
time to get the belief it gets, takes time to
(05:20):
get the understanding of what we call a system's approach
to doing business, and uh, you know it's time to
bring the bacon home, if you will.
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Now one other thing, when you were first in office,
you ordered a performance audit by I believe a woman
from Utah or a firm out of Utah. Yeah, what
what happened? What did they find? What did we ever
see a report on that? And how much does she
find it safe?
Speaker 2 (05:43):
Yeah? So we're still uh, Epiphany is here at least
half the time, working in different departments and continuing to
work with all of our cabinet members and senior leadership
in every cabinet. And that's the uh, the approach of
you know, everyone learning what a system's approach. Because if
(06:04):
you've got a system's approach is really simple. If you've
got ten people in a process to have an outcome
to help a child, and there's two in the in
two of the ten that don't fully understand what they're
supposed to be doing, and they're performing at a level
of three out on a scale of ten. Well they've
messed the whole thing up. Everybody can be doing great work,
(06:24):
but if one or two are off, the whole thing
is so you know, those are things we've been working on.
And it really, it really wasn't an audit. It's a
it's a Chris and John and Hurt their team. They
they're helping everybody learn how to operate government like a
business and have have tangible outcomes. I have yet to
(06:47):
meet a human being that, with the proper leadership doesn't
want to do great things. And yeah, we've had great
attitude andal change, working hard for Nebraskans and yeah, it's seriously,
people that have not been in business thinks that's gigantic.
You know, it's not. Do you like to eliminate positions? No,
(07:08):
you love to grow stuff, but government is not the
place to grow. That's what our economy is supposed to do,
That's what private enterprise is supposed to do. We need
to start saying way more knows, way more knows to
do in business, way less contracts, focus on the things
that are really needed, and then get government out of
(07:29):
our hair of the rooms.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Love to have another conversation Governor about revenue generation too,
but that'll wait for another day. Thanks so much for
coming on this morning. Appreciate time.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Hey, great to be on things for all you guys
do have a great day.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
You bet. Nebraska Governor Jim Pilling here on kfab's morning
news
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