GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY HONORED AS A 2009 ‘PUBLIC OFFICIAL OF THE YEAR’

GOVERNOR MARTIN O’MALLEY HONORED AS A 2009 ‘PUBLIC OFFICIAL OF THE YEAR’ BY GOVERNING MAGAZINE

WASHINGTON, DC (November 19, 2009) – Governor O'Malley will be officially honored tonight as Governing magazine's ‘Public Official of the Year’ for 2009. Governor O’Malley is one of eight individuals nationwide being honored, but is the only Governor to receive the award. The Governor is featured on the cover of the magazine’s November 2009 issue. The magazine notes that Governor O’Malley is “showing that states, too, can improve performance by measuring what they do and relentlessly monitoring their progress.” Previous Governors of the Year include Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour and Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels.

During his first-term in office, Governor O’Malley has reduced state General Fund spending to $500 million below where it was three years ago. The Governor has maintained the state’s coveted Triple A Bond rating and protected our core priorities of public education, public safety and jobs.

“This year’s public officials have thrived in the face of remarkable challenges,” said Alan Ehrenhalt, Editor of Governing Magazine. “Today, with every government grappling with the effects of a prolonged recession, their examples prove that strong, smart leadership is possible in the most difficult of circumstances.”

“We have made progress in Maryland, even during challenging times, by reforming our state government and embracing new innovations to improve public safety in our communities, create jobs, and expand opportunity for more of our families,” said Governor O’Malley. “Our shared pursuit of progress depends on our ability make our state government work more effectively, efficiently, and transparently for the people we serve.”

Governor O’Malley will be honored this evening along with seven other honorees from throughout the country at an official ceremony in Washington, DC hosted by Governing Magazine. Other honorees include Steve Hewitt, Administrator in Greensburg, KS; Steve Jennings, Chief Information Officer for Harris County, TX; Phyllis Kahn, State Representative from Minnesota; Crit Luallen, State Auditor from Kentucky; Pete Rahn, Transportation Director from Missouri; Sam Reed, Secretary of State in Washington; and Jay Williams, Mayor of Youngstown, OH.

Governor O’Malley’s efforts to implement performance-measurement management techniques stem from the creation of CitiStat while Mayor of Baltimore. The program was brought to the State level in 2007 as StateStat, and has since been replicated by jurisdictions throughout the country that are committed to efficient and effective government.

StateStat, which was implemented to make state government more accountable and more efficient, brings together relevant agencies on a variety of priority areas for the O’Malley-Brown Administration. Since applying this model to the agencies primarily responsible for youth services in Maryland, for example, the state has increased enrollment in evidence-based youth programs, reduced juvenile crime, and expanded access to healthcare for low- to moderate-income families throughout the State.

Key public safety, health care, and social services agencies were selected to form the initial foundation of StateStat review process: the Department of Juvenile Services, The Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, Human Resources, and Health and Mental Hygiene. The program has expanded to include critical service agencies such as: the Maryland Department of State Police, the Department of General Services, the Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation, and the Department of Housing and Community Development.

To find out more about Governing Magazine, visit: http://www.governor.maryland.gov/governing.asp