Plenary Session Transcripts

Governors Attending:

Guests:

Discussion Subjects:

• Agriculture (AG) – review of omnibus farm legislation and state-federal agricultural priorities; and panel discussion on strengthening the state-federal relationship in agriculture (with focus on soil conservation, agricultural research and extension, and transportation)
• Community and Economic Development (CED) – national economic revitalization policy; development choices for the '80s: recommended actions for states; and task force reports
• Criminal Justice and Public Protection (CJ) – state-federal priority concerns with the criminal justice system; problems facing state correctional systems; update on state-federal priorities in emergency management; and review of the state of the National Guard
• Executive Committee (Exec) – implementation of the Committee’s priorities and the Governors’ federalism agenda; and the President’s top state-federal priorities
• Executive Management and Fiscal Affairs (EM) – FY82 federal budget; update on the Governors’ federalism agenda; reports of the Subcommittee on Public Retirement Systems; and report of the Subcommittee on Management Improvement
• Human Resources (HR) – Medicaid, welfare reform, low income energy assistance, and other state-federal human services priorities
  International Trade and Foreign Relations (ITFR) – the Administration’s trade priorities; the Committee’s legislative priorities; report of the Task Force on North American Cooperation; the state role in international trade; and report of the Task Force on Tourism
• Natural Resources and Environmental Management (NR) – energy emergency planning; and coal conversion opportunities
• Transportation, Commerce, and Technology (TCT) – technological innovation; and recommended legislative revisions to improve the federal highway system
• Other Governors’ Sessions – seminar on Governors’ initiatives in human services; Subcommittee on Management Improvement; effective leadership in the Governor’s office; Subcommittee on Nuclear Power; and Task Force on North American Cooperation
• Plenary Session Discussion Subjects - President’s economic recovery program; and energy

Points of Interest:

Former South Carolina Governor Jim Edwards, now Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, addressed the Governors regarding President Reagan’s economic recovery program. He said that our nation’s military and political strength had been eroding, while our economic vitality suffered from double-digit inflation, high interest rates, high unemployment, rising taxes, declining rates of growth in productivity, staggering budget deficits, and increasing regulatory intrusion. The web of regulations and centralized governmental decisionmaking that shackled the private sector added $100 billion a year to inflationary pressure, according to Edwards. Regulations were discouraging innovation, reducing investment, and raising unemployment by increasing labor costs.

Despite skepticism that it couldn’t be done, President Reagan had reduced spending by $50 billion in the FY82 budget. Edwards argued that 30 percent tax reductions over three years would put savings capital back into the hands of American citizens. And the accelerated cost recovery system for industry—based on rapid writeoffs on new investments—was expected to revitalize the nation’s genius, increasing productivity and creating new jobs.

Secretary Edwards also told Governors that the Energy Department would revitalize the nation’s nuclear power industry and redirect energy research and development programs to high risk, but high payout, long-term targets.

Memorable Quotes:

Governor John Dalton of Virginia said the following in seeking support for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund: "…the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund itself was created by a group of Vietnam veterans as a nonprofit, charitable organization for the purpose of establishing a national memorial in Washington, DC. The memorial will make no political statement about the war…Its purpose is to unite all Americans in remembrance of the 12.7 million men and women who served in that conflict, made the same sacrifices, suffered the same casualties, and deserve the same recognition as the millions of other young Americans who have gone into battle through the centuries under different circumstances…The question before us is not whether our country was right or wrong in that conflict. The question may never be finally settled. The question before us and before all Americans is whether our Vietnam veterans deserve any less than other young Americans who did their duty as they saw it…[The memorial] was unanimously recognized by the Congress last year, and a two-acre site was set aside for a proper memorial, the design of which is the subject of a national competition." [NOTE: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, designed by Maya Ying Lin, was dedicated in 1982]

Selected Policy Positions Adopted:
(1) Recommending extension of the Clean Water Act deadline for fishable, swimmable, waters from 1983 until 1990; recognizing that states should have primary responsibility for water pollution control and ground water management, with federal responsibility for public health protection; and urging that Congress provide necessary funding to reach mandated, cleanup deadlines; (2) supporting the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, a nonprofit fund created by Vietnam veterans recognized by Congress; and (3) supporting Administration economic recovery programs that returned responsibilities to state and local governments.