Why is Government Slow? Understanding the Pace and What You Can Do

Ever wondered why that new park is taking years to build or why road repairs seem to move at a snail's pace? You're not alone. The slow pace of government can be frustrating, but it's often intentional.

In this episode of Simple Civics: Greenville County, Katy Smith and Nathaniel DeSantis explain why local and state governments are designed to be slow. Discover how processes like public input, multiple ordinance readings, and inter-departmental checks and balances act as crucial safety brakes to prevent costly, and sometimes dangerous, mistakes.

We explore real-world Greenville examples, including the transformation of Augusta Street and how a "road diet" and public feedback led to a safer corridor. We also discuss how the same principles apply at the state level, looking at the successful push for paid parental leave in South Carolina.

Find out how you can effectively engage with the process and make your voice heard to help strike the right balance between caution and progress.

Transcript

Katy Smith: This episode of Simple Civics: Greenville County is brought to you by Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, providing free books to children zero to five throughout Greenville County. To sign up, visit greenvillefirststeps.org/freebooks. That's greenvillefirststeps.org/freebooks. Why does government take so long? This is a refrain that we hear on the regular, and we've discussed it within past episodes, but it's worth covering on its own as a standalone topic because it is fundamental to government. I'm Katy Smith with Greater Good Greenville, and on this episode of Simple Civics: Greenville County, our producer Nathaniel DeSantis with Podcast Studio X and I will talk about why government can seem to take forever to get things done. We'll get into the details with real-life examples, some of the pros and cons, and what you can do about it.

Nathaniel DeSantis: Welcome back, everyone, to another episode of Simple Civics. Nathaniel here with Katy. As always, welcome to the podcast. And let's just get right into it. So this might sound a little bit blunt, but why is local and state government so slow? Like you hear people say, "We'll have a new park here in five years." And you're like, "What? Five years?"

Katy Smith: Right? It is a fair question, and you are not alone in wondering that. And the short version is government moves slowly because it is designed to move slowly, especially at the local and state level, where there is a big emphasis on public input, on process, and really avoiding costly mistakes.

Nathaniel DeSantis: But that process can be frustrating to people, admittedly. We hear residents, they email us on the podcast even, asking why things take so long, and why the process of the first reading, the second reading, tabling, et cetera, sounds so, I'll go with archaic.

Katy Smith: Yeah. I mean, generally that slowness and all of those steps like readings are built into the system for the safety of the public and the taxpayer. You can think of it like brakes on a car. We want government to be careful, to be really deliberate because it's handling big stuff like zoning, infrastructure, public safety, building a new highway or changing rules about where a business can locate or even deciding what someone can be arrested for. These are things that are important and you cannot easily unwind. So if you move too fast, you miss things. And in government, those mistakes can be expensive or honestly even dangerous.

Nathaniel DeSantis: So I see from that point of view completely. But then what is the difference and where do we draw the line between being careful and dragging our feet?

Katy Smith: That is a fair question, and it is a fine line. And I mean, honestly, sometimes it is just red tape or inefficiency. Sometimes what can look like dragging feet is hopefully a chain of checks and balances. Like, let's say you want to build a new library. That decision may have to go through community input meetings, a council vote, budget approvals. It can even include environmental reviews. It's a whole chain reaction.

Nathaniel DeSantis: So I guess the point that we can kind of emphasize, and Katy, feel free to clarify, but it's not just one person saying yes or no.

Katy Smith: Correct. At least that's how it should be. The point is no single person should have that power. Most decisions require collaboration across departments, between boards, elected officials, and sometimes between jurisdictions like a city, a county, a state. It's slow, but hopefully that prevents corruption and it prevents snap decisions, hopefully, based on pressure or politics.

Nathaniel DeSantis: Right. And that reminds me a lot of GP McLeer, who's been on the podcast a few times. He's the mayor of Fountain Inn, where he talked about a turn lane on a recent episode that we'll link in the show notes. [0:51] But walk me through maybe another real life example. Okay.

Katy Smith: And I did love when we posted on social media, and Mayor McLeer did as well, seeing all of the comments from people of Fountain Inn saying, "We waited so long, we're so thrilled that this happened." So another example that will probably be familiar to many are the changes to Augusta Street within the city of Greenville that have taken place since 2022.

Katy Smith: So if you all are familiar with Augusta Street, it's also 25. You know, in the city of Greenville, runs from Mauldin Road up into downtown. And in 2022, there was a traffic study that showed that street had the most vehicle crashes out of the 46 city corridors that they studied. And if you drove the street back in those days, I mean, you experienced this. It had four lanes with no turn lanes and a narrow but very well-traveled sidewalk on both sides that had lots of pedestrians. It had bicycle riders who I don't think are allowed to ride on the sidewalk, but were really afraid to ride on the road because it was so dangerous. People disregarded the low speed limit and they were quickly passing cars who are slowing to make left or right turns. And it's a main thoroughfare for people coming from 85 to work downtown or at one of the hospitals. It also has two elementary schools, a middle school and a high school on it. So lots of morning and afternoon traffic. This is my main thoroughfare to get to work and errands. And I always felt like I was playing a video game when I was trying to drive down it. So most people would agree that Augusta Street was a problem. But what to do about it? I mean, I've already listed a lot of stakeholders thinking about all those drivers.

Katy Smith: Well, the time for talking came to a close terribly in 2021, when a woman walking her dog on the sidewalk on an early Sunday morning was killed by a car that ran off Augusta Street. It was a tragedy, and it really catalyzed work beginning in earnest. But it wasn't simple because Augusta Street is in the city of Greenville, but it is a state road. So it required coordination between the city of Greenville and the South Carolina Department of Transportation. [0:51]

Katy Smith: And there were multiple options, like engineering options, available to make the road more safe, each of which had pros and cons and supporters and detractors for it. So how the process unfolded really was a demonstration of how just the right amount of slow can be effective. So in the end, the city worked with SCDOT, the Department of Transportation, to do a demonstration project of a road diet. They temporarily changed the striping to create just two lanes with a center turn lane and bike lanes, giving more distance to the sidewalk and, you know, making people go the same speed with no quick passing or stopping. And the city got a lot of feedback. It was definitely adjustment that first week, I can say, as a driver. But the data were undeniable. It worked, and so it was implemented, and there was lots of time for people to experience it and talk about it. But I will say then later in 2024, the city proposed making further changes by adding, I think they were concrete medians to Augusta Street to prevent people from making left turns. They had public meetings and residents came out and said, "Absolutely not," or, "No, thank you." And the city listened and they didn't implement that. So it kind of showed how that process took a little bit of time, but the end result is one that people generally support or at least are resigned to using.

Nathaniel DeSantis: Right. So it sounds like what you're saying, it's not as simple as just get a bucket, get some paint. And go fix the road.

Katy Smith: Exactly. I wish it were that easy. But even paint can have a political process behind it, which this literal paint on Augusta Street did.

Nathaniel DeSantis: Right. And you mentioned public input earlier, and we've talked about public input and getting involved. So definitely go to council meetings or any local meeting that you can. But is that one of the factors as to why all of this is so slow?

Katy Smith: Yeah. And I don't say that negatively because public input is super important, but it does take time. You have to notify people. You have to hold meetings. You have to take their comments and revise the plans. And of course, people don't always agree. Some want change fast. Others don't want it at all.

Nathaniel DeSantis: Not every resident has the available time on a Tuesday. Like I'm thinking a single mother with three kids who has two jobs. It's not so easy. It's like, "Oh, well, let me just go to the county council meeting on this Tuesday at five." Like they might have work. They might have a job to go to. They might have kids to take care of. Yeah, after school activities, people do have lives outside of government. So, you know, giving people the time to fit it in their schedule is important because imagine if you're really, if you listening are really passionate about something going on, but they only have one hearing and it's on a Tuesday when you have another obligation that you cannot miss. You'd be pretty upset if you couldn't put your input there. So these things take time.

Katy Smith: I'm sure you all drive, you know, have seen driving around town, you might see a sign on the road that says "rezoning, call a number to get information." And that's a prime example of people are not paying any attention to city council or county council, but they see a sign near their house and they're like, "Wait, what's about to happen?" And then they get engaged in the process. They go to the meeting, they let their neighbors know either, "Hey, yay, we're getting the store we wanted," or, "Oh, no, we don't want this to come." And then people have time to go to hopefully a couple meetings or if they can't ever get to a meeting, they've got now two weeks to call their council member. You know, they have time to get their input known. So it is really critical. If you Google the term civic engagement, you know, it means so many things to different people. But for government, it usually means how are we intentionally reaching out to our residents and letting them know what's going on and inviting them to participate. So you could even just look at county council, for instance, it requires three readings of an ordinance, meaning it has three times that it comes before council before it's finalized. And so that means the public has at least six weeks to get wind of what's happening and let council members know their opinions. And then those meetings are posted online so people can watch them after the fact and get engaged. So that's just one example of how that process has steps to let people speak.

Nathaniel DeSantis: And I'm assuming that varies by different counties.

Katy Smith: It does. And I will be honest, I do not know enough about the different rules. Like I know that county council has three readings, city council for Greenville has just two readings, but they can choose to table something or put a workshop in between to slow down the process.

Nathaniel DeSantis: I guess the question, maybe a few people or maybe some pessimistic people, sometimes like myself are wondering, do maybe politicians use that slowness, like drag things out so that they don't have to make tough calls?

Katy Smith: I think sometimes, yeah. I mean, delay can be a political strategy. If a topic is really controversial, a council member might say, "Let's study this more," or, "We need more input," as a way of voting on it or to avoid, excuse me, a way to avoid voting on it. So for sure. And sometimes doing that can help signal to certain voters who feel very strongly about it that you're paying attention, but you're just not going to do something quite yet.

Nathaniel DeSantis: Right, right, right. There's some hiding behind it.

Katy Smith: It happens for sure. And I mean, truly, there can be a legit fear of backlash. If they make a quick decision and that decision ends up being very unpopular, it can cost them the next election. So in some respects, there is a political incentive to go slow and be cautious.

Nathaniel DeSantis: This is really, this is really great for Greenville, Greenville County, Greenville City. But we live in a state, the state of South Carolina. So what about the state government? Is this kind of the same deal?

Katy Smith: Yeah, it is pretty similar. At the state level, you've got your legislature, but then you have different committees that feed into decisions that come before the legislative body. And that's true at cities and counties as well. But those committees at the legislative level are really important and are a place to really infuse your input as they're considering an issue. Plus, in many states, including ours, you have a part-time legislature. They meet just a few months a year, and that limits how quickly anything can get done.

Nathaniel DeSantis: And I'd just like to highlight the episode we did with Erin Rigot on paid parental leave for the state of South Carolina. This was a very big deal. And you know, it's really funny. So Erin came on the podcast, obviously, as I just said. And you guys, I remember sitting behind my computer recording it and you guys were like, "You did this in lightning time." And I was like, "Oh, this was done in like months." And you guys were like, "It was done in two years." I was like, "Lightning time." Okay. Maybe not my definition of lightning, but for the government, I think it is lightning, but I think that exemplifies how even at the state level, you know, there's that same involvement that you get at the county or the city level. And it's the same process of having to go, having to talk, having to hear from everyone and had the state legislature not heard from Erin Rigot, who knows what would have happened.

Katy Smith: Right.

Nathaniel DeSantis: And had they not had the opportunity, maybe, you know, maybe she couldn't make it week one or week two, but if they didn't have that opportunity and that slowness, maybe this really great thing for teachers in South Carolina wouldn't have happened.

Katy Smith: And, you know, I think related to that is an interesting note about, you know, some people are probably really surprised to learn that the legislature is part time. And, yeah, in South Carolina, the legislature generally meets only the second Tuesday in January through the second Thursday in May. And they only meet Tuesdays through Thursdays. So that's not a lot of time, which means stuff can't happen super fast. I mean, it happens that way because our legislators have jobs like they are our fellow community members that are attorneys or insurance agents or teachers or physicians or whatever the various things are that they do. And that means they're in touch with people like Erin Rigot. Erin's teaching their kids or they're, you know, working alongside her. So it just highlights that, yeah, they're citizens just like us that have experiences and interests that hopefully make them connected to us. One thing I'll note regarding part-time legislatures, many people are surprised to hear that in Texas, the legislature meets only half of the year in odd-numbered years. They meet only every other year. So they generally won't meet at all in 2026 unless something comes up that they decide to convene, which has happened in the past and there may happen again next year. Who knows?

Nathaniel DeSantis: And during this conversation, we've been highlighting the role of an active residency in this process. But we even talked about like you have lobbying, legal review amendments. It's a really long list. So it's not only just the residential aspect, but it's, it's all of it. It's the whole ecosystem. But with that in mind, knowing all of this, is there any way to make it faster without sacrificing all the public input and accountability?

Katy Smith: Yes, there definitely are. And there are things that cities and states are trying and that our federal government has tried in the past, like streamlining permitting processes or using digital tools to speed up paperwork or combining different public meetings to avoid redundancy. Speed is important in some respects. If you are trying to build a home or an apartment complex or an office building, for instance, that slowness costs actual money because you're having to finance your construction without revenue coming in yet. So if it takes months for a permit to pass and you're just sitting there waiting to put down bricks or install light switches, I mean, that, that is a problem. But at the end of the day, some slowness is just built into the system. It is not broken. It is just cautious. Right.

Nathaniel DeSantis: So it's kind of like we're speeding up the non-essential things. I'll use two examples. One, I believe you can get your driver's license renewed online. That's an example for the public in terms of speeding things up. So you don't have to spend a whole day at the DMV. Another one, though, that I really loved, you know, four or five years ago now when I set up my company, I could, I did it all online.

Katy Smith: Right.

Nathaniel DeSantis: And then I think the same day for me, I got an email being like, "Hey, you're approved." And just like that, I had an LLC.

Katy Smith: Yeah.

Nathaniel DeSantis: And I didn't have to go to the capital or send anything in. It was all electronic. I think that's a good example of speed in the system. Now, that's a little bit different because we're not talking about, you know, changing legislation or introducing new bills, but it is still speed.

Katy Smith: Yeah, that's where government can work fast and it makes sense for it, too. Yeah.

Nathaniel DeSantis: And then I'll also say that we did an episode back in 2022 on parliamentary procedure with Dan Tripp, who was the county council chairman at the time. And that covers some of this as well. So I think that is worth everyone taking a listen to. Again, that will be in the show notes. We'll link to that there. But it can be a very complicated process. If someone listening is frustrated by how long things take, what could they do about it?

Katy Smith: Well, that's a great question. I mean, that is the question. Mainly show up. Show up in person, show up in email, whatever it means. Attend meetings, write public comments, talk to your council member. The process is slow, but it can move faster when people are engaged and pushing for momentum. And also, of course, vote always. The people you elect control the priorities. Now, you can also check the websites of these government entities, usually on Fridays, and they'll show you the coming week's calendar and agenda, and that can help you know what it is you're wanting to pay attention to. I will say, though, I know you all are busy people, and you probably can't monitor all of this. So please know that there are likely organizations that monitor things you care about for you. It could be if you're interested in conservation, Upstate Forever. If you're interested in particular party politics, sign up for the social media of the party that you support, you know, whatever it might be. Sign up for social media and mailing lists and they'll kind of let you know when you need to pay attention to the things that you care about.

Nathaniel DeSantis: And I'll also point out something I had mentioned is some people might not have time to go to these meetings, but you can still, like Katy said, you can still contact people in government about this. You can go to the Simple Civics website. You'll see a resources tab and you'll find a link that says "Who Represents Me," where you can look up your city council, county council, school board member, state representative, state senator, and federal congressperson based on your home address. So go there because you can, as the whole point being, you can contact them directly if you can't make it to these meetings. So it's still a good way to be involved and get your voice in there and maybe speed up the process at the same time. But I think that brings us to the close of this episode of Simple Civics. If you liked what you heard, make sure to follow the podcast and share with a friend who's wondering why that new park still isn't open.

Catherine Puckett: Simple Civics: Greenville County is a project of Greater Good Greenville. Greater Good Greenville was catalyzed by the merger of the Nonprofit Alliance and the Greenville Partnership for Philanthropy. You can learn more on our website at greatergoodgreenville.org.