Last month, I discussed Washington State’s legalization of recreational marijuana. The enabling legislation focused on state requirements for the licensing of production, processing and retail sales. It ignored the fact that these operations occur in counties and cities with their own ability to promote or deny such operations.
The state’s failure to take a holistic approach to marijuana operations creates a dilemma for those obtaining a license. An applicant receives their license, but fails local zoning code requirements. Whose rules apply? Who enforces? Has government failed the citizen in this case? The concept of “buyer beware” doesn’t work in the ever-increasing regulatory environment.
In the 1980s, the Cold War was alive and well. The island of Grenada provided us a testing ground. Operation Urgent Fury was the U.S. response. President Reagan defined the mission: protect innocent lives, especially the U.S. students attending medical school; forestall further chaos; restore law and order and the institutions of government on the island of Grenada.
During the operation, a Marine unit found itself under heavy attack. They needed fire power. Good news: there was a C-130 gunship was available. Bad news: despite similar radios, they couldn’t communicate. The resourceful Marine commander placed a “collect” long-distance call to Fort Bragg, North Carolina. His identify verified, he was connected to a radio circuit allowing him to talk to the gunship. The outcome? See the movie “Heartbreak Ridge.”
Upon the completion of Urgent Fury, an after action review occurred. Interoperability between services and equipment was now necessary. There were insufficient resources to support each service having a full array of capabilities and exchanging liaisons. Modern warfare in economically difficult times called for senior leaders to be able to pick service assets to create joint task forces.
Today’s generals and admirals must be “joint” qualified. Military schools teach interoperability. Officers are required to serve a minimum three-year tour in a joint assignment and successfully earn joint designation. Service cultures still exist, but others understand them and use them appropriately. Joint is the norm for military operation. Can a similar philosophy be adopted for the “civilian” side of government?
Cross-sector partnerships are becoming the civilian equivalent. Boston’s Federal Reserve Bank has implemented its Working Cities Challenges to address low-income housing redevelopment in a blighted section of Boston. The Partnering Initiative, a nonprofit focused on building collaboration across all sectors, has 12 principles for partnering success.
Knowing the issue is critical. As important, knowing and respecting partners, understanding their cultures and drivers for engagement, their capabilities to include limitations and challenges, builds trust. Trust can lead to mission accomplishment. It is this issue that our federalist system needs to address. Too often, we bureaucrats have only worked one “level” of government. We often fail, or even care, to understand the pressures our peers face in their daily endeavors and how our decisions may impact them. This needs to change.
In Washington, rule-making is the process for implementing legislation. As the Liquor and Cannabis Control Board (LCCB) underwent the process, several local jurisdictions requested that local zoning codes be met in addition to the distance requirements established under state law. The request was ignored, thus creating the dilemma of who’s rules apply.
Others now plan to legalize recreational marijuana. Take the cross sector and holistic approach by including local government issues in implementation. It serves your applicants as well, they know all the requirements to be met, not just the state’s.
Submitted by Larry Keeton
ASPA National Weblog 