The State of Public Service

On Monday [original post 1/30/08], our boss delivered his final State of the Unions address. Thankfully, it was no swan song, no backward-looking quest for legacy. The speech was about the future, work still to be done, goals to be achieved. The President proposed a laundry list of new programs including housing reform, funding for basic scientific research, an economic stimulus package, and aid to foreign countries, just to name a few. Almost every issue was mentioned from the immediately important (the economy, Iraq) to the somewhat trivial (earmarks, medical lawsuits). But in this whirlwind of legislative priorities there was one glaring omission: government reform.

Whatever your favorite flavor of government reform is – recruitment of Generation Y (that would be most YGLers), the retirement wave, the Public Service Academy, or student loan repayment – not one was mentioned in the State of the Union. This is a remarkable omission considering the challenges our nation will face in the coming years and the role government is expected to play. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 50% of the federal workforce will be eligible for retirement by 2010, and the government is not hiring enough of us to replace them. On an issue like global warming, who do they expect to monitor emissions? Who do they expect to audit the energy companies and write the regulations? Who will be here to allocate the $300 million in new early-childhood education funds the President proposed? Who will protect the nation’s borders, initiate recalls, or help low-income Americans buy their first home?

In a nation as complex and diverse as ours, there are countless missions that are vital to our continued health, safety, and prosperity. Someone has to implement these programs. The YGL has a membership of over 1300 energetic, educated, and motivated young feds representing almost every federal agency, and chapters are springing up around the country. However, if we don’t find more young people to join us in public service, even that won’t be enough to accomplish all that the government is expected to do. But it just might be enough to begin to solve the problem.

Since the push for government reform isn’t coming from the top down, we must push it from the ground up, from the “grassroots” level. The retirement wave is an opportunity as much as it is a problem. It will open up positions to young feds throughout the government, bringing much needed innovation to bear on our nation’s challenges. It’s up to all of us to take advantage of that opportunity. The government needs innovative thinkers to question policies and procedures, to look at things with fresh eyes and ask why. Make your voice heard. Fix problems and offer solutions. If our supervisors see how well our generation can solve complex problems, they’ll want more of us.

The theme of the President’s speech was all about putting trust in the skill and determination of our people. That includes young public servants. He said, "In all we do, we must trust in the ability of free people to make wise decisions, and empower them to improve their lives and their futures." Sooner or later, the nation will be putting its trust in all of us, in our ability to make wise decisions to improve our country. We are in the forefront of a changing of the guard. Let us pave the way and show the promise of a new generation of young government leaders.

James Hedrick, Vice President
Young Government Leaders
2007-2008