Bredesen Addresses Tennessee Press Association
Friday, February 06, 2009 | 02:20am
NASHVILLE - Governor Phil Bredesen addressed the Tennessee Press Association Thursday during the organization’s Winter Convention, taking the opportunity to discuss the seriousness of the state’s financial situation, and the potential to use it as a means of improvement.
“To put it in perspective, the nation’s economy is facing the worst financial crisis since World War II, and we’re experiencing an historic downturn here in Tennessee as well. That does not mean that we can’t manage through. Thanks to the good decisions we’ve made over the past six years, we are well positioned to weather the storm. But we are going to have to work together. Whatever pain we are feeling in state government, there is a great deal more pain out there among people who have lost or still fear losing their job, or their home,” Bredesen said.
“The reality is that we will still need to make some difficult and painful cuts – even with federal stimulus money that may come in, which we will only be able to use over a two year period. We need to be level-headed and responsible, because we don’t know how long this economic situation is going to last.
“I believe the best thing that we in state government can do for people right now is continue to manage ourselves responsibly – so we can provide what support we can to those who need it. I ask for your help as we continue to serve our citizens and continue to keep Tennessee strong.”
Bredesen also reaffirmed his commitment to open government and pledge to continue the work to make government more transparent to all Tennesseans.
“I am committed to this, and it has become a fundamental part of how I believe one should approach public office,” Bredesen said.
“One of my first acts as governor was to completely open up the budgeting process. I believe it created a much healthier atmosphere in Tennessee and served to improve the confidence of the public in their government. The establishment of the Office of Open Records Counsel has helped open access to local government. It gives media organizations and taxpayers across the state guidelines for record requests – and somewhere to go if they are having trouble getting access to what they need.
“Another area of transparency we are working on is a new web portal that will provide additional insight into the operation of state government. Over time, that resource will grow to include more information for the public, eventually including making up-to-date state expenditures easily accessible.”