Gov. Mark Sanford's commendable efforts to improve his relationship with the Legislature apparently have had little effect on two of its most powerful members: Sen. Hugh Leatherman, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and Rep. Dan Cooper, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

The two Republican legislators, along with Democrat Treasurer Grady Patterson, voted to continue the employment of Frank Fusco, director of the state Budget and Control Board, who was slated to end his tenure next month. The legislators' votes serve as a resounding "no" to Mr. Sanford's attempts at rapprochment with key legislative leaders and his efforts to restart the campaign to restructure state government.

As Comptroller General Richard Eckstom points out, the Budget and Control Board staff functions as state government's most important executive agency, since it is in charge of property, procurement and personnel for state government. The choice of the executive director has traditionally been the prerogative of the governor, who is the state's chief executive.

"The issue is not his (Mr. Fusco's) continued employment but whether the governor ought to be taken out of the loop," Mr. Eckstrom says. The comptroller general, incidentally, voted with the governor on the question.

The governor has attempted to strengthen executive branch authority to streamline government, cut bureaucratic waste and improve oversight, but has been repeatedly rebuffed by the Legislature. Last week's vote was further repudiation of restructuring. So were Rep. Cooper's unfortunate remarks following the meeting.

"I never felt like we were going to get along anyway," Rep. Cooper said of the governor, in comments quoted by the State newspaper. "I'll certainly try, but I don't see a lot of bridge-building on their part."

Undercutting the governor's traditional prerogative to name the head of an executive agency hardly falls under the category of "bridgebuilding" on the part of Rep. Cooper, who was recently appointed as head of the House budget committee by House Speaker Bobby Harrell.

Perhaps Rep. Cooper is still rankled that the governor cited his efforts to get a grant for a firetruck to his district last year as an example of "fiscal gimmickry." It would be hard to see why, though, since the governor's efforts to cut unwarranted state expenditures and eliminating legislative budget games have been routinely and repeatedly beaten back by the Legislature.

Without restructuring and reform, such as that sought by the governor, South Carolina will continue to see a lack of accountability in a cumbersome and lumbering system of government dominated by the Legislature and its appointees.