Talk Radio News Service: News, Politics, Media

An effective model of performance measurement used in Baltimore, Md. that reduced violent crimes and murders, increased revenue, and revived citizens' faith in the city could be applied to other cities and states nationwide. Gov. Martin O'Malley testified before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee about this model, which he championed in the city.

The model, known as "CitiStat" when O'Malley was mayor of Baltimore and "StateStat" when he became governor and raised it to the state level, has had a positive outcome. During implementation of CitiStat, violent crime dropped 40 percent, population reversed steadily from loss to growth, and added $350 million to the City's budget.

CitiStat was based off a plan designed by Jack Maple, a designer of city crime fighting strategies, during former Mayor Rudy Guilliani's tenure in New York City.
What works about this type of performance evaluation is the measurements are taken daily instead of annually, O'Malley said. But measurement is not enough.

"You're not going to improve the weight of the pig just by weighing it," said O'Malley.

Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.) put the plan into perspective: With many governors up for re-election this November, performance measurement like StateStat should be taught in governor training to help the new administrations. O'Malley noted that new governors tend to implement the plan rather than incumbents.

Executives who have also used similar plans include Democrats Gov. Christine Gregoire of Washington State and Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas.