The financing of the ombudsman service is to be extracted from the agencies’ existing budget. It is clear that some government agencies are more prone to utilize the services of an ombudsman. An agency ombudsman utilization review should also be implemented. A proportional budget reduction is to be implemented in the next fiscal year.
This approach is less threatening. It keeps the disagreement out of the court system while allowing both parties to maintain their dignity. Reducing the burden on the court system would result in significant financial savings that would benefit the taxpayer. The ombudsman approach would provide a starting point from which the California judicial system could initiate studies for other pilot programs in search of solutions that would improve the proficiency and expediency of this extremely expensive duty of government.
It is the high cost of freedom that requires a nation/state to allocate its resources to meet the common goals of society. It is the responsibility of the government to manage the financial burden of the judicial process, and it is the individual’s responsibility not to abuse that process. The loss of freedom is too high a price to pay.
It is clear that the judicial system in many California counties has a shortage of judges, which deprives individuals of the basic right to justice. It is not appropriate that a citizen be placed on an over-crowded court docket, come before an over-wrought judge, to receive “justice” sometime in the future. California has a number of crises; one is the court system. The ombudsman effort, I propose, would be a step toward some relief in this system.
“Come now, and let us reason together, says the Lord…” — Isaiah 1:18
