Introductory Remarks: The Honorable Stephen Goldsmith, Director, Innovations in American Government Awards Program; and Daniel Paul Professor of Government, Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation John F. Kennedy School of Government Harvard University

Bureaucracies hinder government performance by creating inefficiency and confusion.

Iowa’s Charter Agencies have reinvented the relationship between state government and its bureaucracy. These state agencies have volunteered to be accountable for measurable customer benefits and to contribute savings and revenues. In return the state exempts them from many bureaucratic requirements that frustrate and disappoint the public and stifle government workers. The concept is a revolution in government management that takes square aim at bureaucracy’s tangle of red tape and redirects that energy into innovation to achieve results most valued by Iowa’s citizens.

Charter Agencies have improved state government services while producing $15 million annually in savings and in additional revenues.

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