Wilson proposes to privatize law school

Wednesday, April 10, 1996

Use of private sector key to downsizing of state organizationsBy
Rachanee Srisavasdi

Daily Bruin Staff

Gov. Pete Wilson announced sweeping reforms to significantly
downsize state government last Thursday, including a proposal to
transfer a University of California law school over to nonprofit or
private management.

The proposal, which could affect law schools at UCLA, UC Davis,
UC Berkeley or Hastings Law School, is among Wilson’s numerous
efforts to decrease state budget costs by privatizing, eliminating
or consolidating certain state organizations.

Wilson’s tentative initiatives, coined the Competitive
Government Report, were created in response to a task force
investigation of statewide government organizations beginning last
fall.

The concept of transferring a UC law school to private control
is not new. Wilson had proposed privatization in his 1993-94
budget, yet the item was never formally considered by the Board of
Regents.

Among the governor’s suggestions are that the regents and law
schools decide which law school to privatize, and come up with a
plan by February 1997, according to the report. Yet some regents
maintained that the proposals are just suggestions, and any action
would have to be considered by the university.

"I don’t think (privatization is) a possibility right at this
moment," said Clair Burgener, chairman of the Board of Regents.
"But that can change. It would still be immensely complicated and
something that would have to be thoroughly discussed (by the
university)."

The four UC law schools receive the majority of their funding
from the state. As professional schools, the law schools require
more funding than an average graduate department. Wilson argued
that having four public law schools is a drain on taxpayers.

"We’re in tough economic times," said Lisa Kalustian, a
spokeswoman for Wilson. "We are asking what the government needs to
be providing and what the private sector can provide."

While the governor’s office maintained that law school
privatization may benefit the state, some argued transferring
control to the private sector would be a waste of the state’s
already-invested money.

"Transition costs will be extremely high," said John Varat, a
UCLA law professor. "There wouldn’t be money savings for the state,
which has put public management and resources into (the law
schools).

"And who’s going to want to pay for it?" he asked.

Indeed, transferring control of a UC law school has more than
its share of complications, including that some of the law schools
are on UC campuses.

"How would we privatize a law school that is on campus?"
Burgener asked. "And does privatization mean the school would have
to pay rent for the buildings?

"It is a very major undertaking to say the least," he added.

Additionally, admissions would change drastically, since the law
school would not be under the state’s master plan, which presently
mandates that state residents be provided with affordable higher
education.

And if a UC law school becomes private, a rise in attendance
fees may be an immediate result. Currently, an incoming first-year
law student pays about about $8,000 a year. In comparison, students
at the private Loyola Marymount law school pay more than $19,000
­ a difference that makes attending a public law school more
desirable for some students.

Regardless of supposed student benefits, some argued that the
state can no longer handle financial responsibilities for
professional schools.

"It should have been proposed years ago, " said Glenn Campbell,
a former regent whose term expired in February. "Why should
taxpayers be paying to produce more lawyers?"

Wilson hopes to transfer control of several other government
agencies and functions to private hands, including the state’s $7.3
billion worker’s compensation insurance fund, as well as all or
part of the state’s telephone system. The report estimates that
government functions can be performed 20 percent to 40 percent
cheaper by the private sector.

In the task force report, Wilson also proposed to eliminate or
consolidate control of key agencies, including the elimination of
the California Energy Commission and the Office of the Public
Advisor.

Among agencies Wilson wants to consolidate are the state’s 400
Caltrans maintenance yards and joining the Department of Banking
with the Department of Savings and Loan.

By limiting the scope of government control, Wilson hopes to
eventually limit government policy to four areas: safety,
education, welfare and public infrastructure.

Whether the majority of Wilson’s proposals will become a reality
may depend on the results of November’s election. If Republicans
gain a majority in the State Legislature, proposals to downsize
state government would be more likely to be passed.