What do charter schools, work-based welfare reform, community policing, and a "second generation" of environmental policies all have in common? Yes, they are all signature New Democrat policy ideas. Even more, they represent efforts to refocus public policy on ends rather than means, and on results rather than on micromanaging procedures or measuring success by such "inputs" as how much money you spend.

Thus, charter schools are public schools organized around publicly defined educational results -- what kids actually and measurably learn--rather than a single model of how schools should operate or who should run them. Community policing makes overall levels of public safety the most important measurement of how well police are doing their jobs, rather than specific crime statistics or time-of-response to 911 calls. "Second generation" environmental policies adopt clearly defined national standards for environmental quality, but then also allow and encourage local community stewardship in determining how to achieve them.

The simple principle of reorganizing government programs to encourage and reward defined results, while providing maximum flexibility, is the central thrust of what New Democrats mean by "reinventing government."

The potentially revolutionary impact of creating performance-based public policies demonstrates why the President's proposal on educational accountability this year is critical (see the January 29,1999, Idea of the Week: Performance-Based Grants). For the first time, it would make federal assistance to states and local school boards contingent on educational improvement, not just demographic characteristics or financial need. It also represents a model for federal-state-local aid programs largely financed and administered through domestic government.

The best overall effort to create performance-based government is in the "show-me- state," Missouri, where New Democrat Gov. Mel Carnahan has launched a statewide initiative called, appropriately, "Show Me Results." The initiative has led to the establishment of 23 statistically measurable goals for state government efforts, some assigned to individual agencies and others to interagency teams. Progress toward these results is the touchstone for virtually every state government decision, including agency budgets. In addition, citizens can easily judge the "payoff" for their investment of tax dollars by reviewing the specific results (see Missouri's web site on this initiative: www.cpi.state.mo.us/mo_smr_title.htm).

The "Show Me Results" initiative is one reason that Missouri was one of the rare states to actually pay attention to what happens to welfare recipients after they leave the public assistance rolls. This is one of the most important national policy questions around, but one that has eluded many federal and state bureaucrats who ignore anyone who is no longer a "client" for their services. Missouri is interested in results, not just caseloads.

It's significant that Gov. Carnahan has made long-time DLC member Quentin Wilson, Missouri's Revenue Director, the overall coordinator for "Show Me Results." A truly evangelical New Democrat, Wilson is determined to make this initiative not just another "reinventing government" effort, but a fundamental departure point in what Missourians expect from their public servants, and what they get back in results.