News

Private prison’s shocking treatment of mentally ill sparks lawsuit. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of the prisoners at the East Mississippi Correctional Facility (EMCF), alleging shocking human rights violations against mentally ill and special needs prisoners by the private, for-profit facility. Intended to provide safe and humane treatment for the state’s seriously mentally ill prisoners, EMCF is described as dangerous, filthy, and  “operating in a perpetual state of crisis where prisoners are at grave risk of death and loss of limbs” with little to no medical or psychiatric attention. Washington Times

Defenders of Public Spaces Take Inspiration From Turkish Protests. “The privatization of the public realm, through the growth of ‘private-public’ space, produces overcontrolled, sterile places which lack connection to the reality and diversity of the local environment, with the result that they all tend to look the same,” Ms. Minton wrote in a report for the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. “They also raise serious questions about democracy and accountability.” Campaigners lament the growth of gated communities and closed malls, which in many areas have replaced open streets and public markets, as well as the proliferation of private security guards and CCTV monitoring. New York Times

Put the Spies Back Under One Roof – Op Ed. And if the N.S.A.’s mass surveillance programs are unlawful or unconstitutional, as many Americans (including myself) believe, does it make any difference whether the work is done by a government analyst or a private contractor?  It does. Here’s why. First, it is dangerous to have half a million people — the number of private contractors holding top-secret security clearances — peering into the lives of their fellow citizens. Contractors aren’t part of the chain of command at the N.S.A. or other agencies and aren’t subject to Congressional oversight. Officially, their only loyalty is to their company and its shareholders. New York Times

Contractors Account for 22% of Defense Dept. Workforce, but 50% of Workforce Costs. Despite claims that hiring private contractors instead of government employees yields greater efficiency and lower costs for taxpayers, information emerging from the across-the-board federal budget sequester suggests that privatization yields higher costs at the expense of taxpayers, but big profits for contractors. As government agencies try to implement the budget cuts in ways that do the least damage to their work, they—and we—are learning more and more about the inefficiencies of private contractors.  AllGov

AFGE praises lawmakers for retaining ban on outsourcing DoD jobs. Rep. Scott Rigell of Virginia offered an amendment to the fiscal 2014 National Defense Authorization Act that would have lifted the moratorium on the A-76 privatization process. The amendment failed yesterday evening by a vote of 178 to 248, with 55 Republicans joining 193 Democrats in voting to keep the outsourcing ban in place. “This amendment would have opened up the outsourcing floodgate at DoD, costing even more civilian jobs that have been subjected to arbitrary cuts for years,” Cox said. PR Newswire

FL: Fred Grimm: Rush to privatize is all about bucks. Our governor was deeply offended by a burst of unkind aspersions after an insurance company that didn’t exist 11 months ago finagled a $52 million deal out of the state-run Citizens Property Insurance Company. Miami Herald

FL: Amid series of complaints at Medical Examiner’s Office, city considers privatizing. The Mayor’s Office began a review of the Medical Examiner’s Office for possible privatization in about August 2012 as one solution to deal with issues in the office. By that time, the city had heard complaints for about a year that included staffing shortage, staff retention, perception of fairness among staff, overall efficiency and facility maintenance.  Florida Times-Union

FL: Pembroke Pines to contract with Charter Schools USA to manage schools. Parts of the city’s nationally recognized charter school system may be privatized as early as this week and more than 300 teachers could lose their jobs. Students, parents, and teachers fear that this change will lower the quality of education at the schools. But city officials say Pines doesn’t have enough money to keep the A-rated schools open and that privatizing parts of them is the only solution.  Sun-Sentinel

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Private Preschools See More Public Funds. Across the country, states and districts are increasingly funneling public funds to religious schools, private nursery schools and a variety of nonprofit organizations. New York Times

Growth of intel outsourcing no secret, but now Congress taking notice. While the average American may have been surprised to learn a 29-year-old civilian could tap into secret government files while drawing a paycheck from a for-profit firm, there is nothing new or unusual about it. Last year, 483,236 private contractors had top-secret security clearances, compared to 791,200 government employees, according to a report by the office of the Director of National Intelligence. Another 582,542 contractors had the less-stringent confidential security clearance, compared to 2.7 million government workers, the report said.  NBCNews.com (blog)

PA: Philadelphia Closes 23 Schools, Lays Off Thousands, Builds Huge Prison. The Philadelphia public school system has been a target for school reform and Charter-enthusiasts for the past few years, and several figures (including the mayor) have defended charter schools as a viable replacement to the entire public school system. The school closures, which (of course) disproportionately affect schools in poor and minority neighborhoods, will force students to venture far outside of their own neighborhoods to attend their closest school. Charter schools in Philadelphia have been plagued by scandal and corruption, have no requirement to admit any student and can dismiss a student at any time. Still, Philadelphia Mayor Nutter defended them during an awkward appearance on MSNBC where he defended the cuts.  Gawker

VA: Creditors to take over operation of privately run, state-owned toll road. Creditors are taking over operation of a privately run, state-owned toll road that has failed to generate enough revenue to cover its debt payments. Washington Post

IA: State leaders to explore privatizing data network. After decades of building out, paying for and grossly underutilizing the statewide fiber-optic data system, officials now are formally exploring their options for privatizing it in hopes of realizing a greater return on an investment that now exceeds $280 million.  Des Moines Register

FL: Florida Gets Federal Approval To Privatize Medicaid. The federal Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services has given full approval for Florida to essentially privatize its Medicaid program. Under the agreement, healthcare companies will have to spend a set amount of money directly on patient care. WSFU

LA: Gov. Jindal gets what he wants from the LSU Board of Supervisors: Opinion. Pity the hapless members of the LSU Board of Supervisors. They are esteemed members of their professions and respected in their communities. But to serve on this board, Gov. Bobby Jindal apparently demanded they surrender their independence and self-respect. It seems they do his bidding about whom to hire and fire. They remain quiet as he decimates the university’s budget. They eagerly comply with his program to relinquish the state’s health care system to corporations. In other words, Jindal says, “Jump.” They respond, “Yes, sir!” Let’s review the dismal record.  NOLA

MI: Editorial: Put money in real education reform, not privatization. “Choice” remains code for privatization, and the governor’s friends on the foundation (which by the way is not really a foundation and has no affiliation with Oxford University as its name might imply) are no friends of public education. The act, a voucher plan, would allow students to take their public money to any private vendor. It would allow charter schools to have selective enrollment and to charge tuition. And it would further decimate public schools in poorer districts, forcing students to attend schools away from their communities, for which their learning would ultimately suffer. Battle Creek Enquirer

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VT: Vt. lawsuit spotlights privatization versus access. A lawsuit by a Brattleboro publisher and the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont is raising a question about what happens to the idea of access to public records when government services are privatized. Prison Legal News of Brattleboro says it’s been stymied in its efforts to get information about settlements of suits brought by inmates against the Corrections Corporation of America. That private company is doing Vermont state business by housing inmates from Vermont at its prison in Kentucky. NECN

OH: Court OKs Cincinnati’s plan to privatize parking. A court ruling today cleared the way for Cincinnati to move forward with a controversial parking privatization plan to help offset a budget shortfall and kick-start major redevelopment projects, allowing city leaders to avoid what likely would have been a nasty campaign to win voter approval. …Under the parking plan, the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority would pay the city $92 million upfront and at least $3 million annually for 30 years. In exchange, the port would gain control over street parking for 30 years and off-street parking for 50 years.  The plan would mean higher parking rates and longer meter hours, although increases would be capped. Columbus Dispatch

CA: Fresno’s Measure G defeated : ‘ It’s a victory , ‘ union leader says. More than a week after Fresno residents went to the polls to decide Measure G, a new vote count shows the effort to privatize city trash has failed. The updated tally, released Wednesday at 3 p.m., has the privatization measure down by 801 votes. Fresno Bee

MI: State says privatization bill violates rules. A Republican lawmaker’s attempt to give more leverage to private companies that bid to provide state services has met with resistance from state officials who fear the idea violates state bidding principles. Lansing State Journal

MO: Missouri Appeals Court Strikes Down Red Light Camera Ordinance. Missouri’s second-highest court on Tuesday ruled the St. Louis municipal ordinance authorizing the use of red light cameras is invalid. St. Louis adopted the photo ticketing ordinance in 2005, without the permission of the state legislature…. American Traffic Solutions (ATS), the private company in charge of the program, began issuing $100 red light camera tickets in 2007. One of the early recipients, Alexa Smith, filed suit after her car was accused of making a right-hand turn on red. Smith paid the fine under the threat of “further legal action by the city of St. Louis” if she failed to do so. Several others joined her in a class action.  TheNewspaper.com

WI: Private-School Tax Credits: Welfare for the Rich? Wisconsin not only wants to join the more than handful of states that give families tax breaks for sending their kids to private schools, its lawmakers are proposing what would be the most generous tax deduction of them all. Governing

PA: Pa. Gov. Corbett presses Senate to send him a liquor privatization bill. Gov. Tom Corbett must be hearing the reports that deep fractures exist within the Senate Republican Caucus over a liquor privatization plan. Patriot-News

NJ: Court blocks CWA’s request to put state’s lottery privatization contract on hold. The Christie administration is allowed move forward with its plan to have a private firm to take over parts of the New Jersey lottery after a state appellate court denied a request by the state’s largest public workers union to block the deal. But the court said it will speed up the process of hearing the Communication Workers of America’s appeal of the contract.  Hunterdon County Democrat

When Your Government Job Isn’t Yours Anymore. Tennessee’s 1,600 IT employees are about to undergo a major reclassification that will open up all of their jobs to competitive bid and push them to reapply for the new positions…Tennessee isn’t the first to overhaul its workforce in such a way. Two somewhat recent examples include Colorado, where Gov. John Hickenlooper asked those in the highest-level, non-appointed executive positions to reapply at the expiration of their contracts in 2011; and Hillsborough County, Fla., which widdled 106 financial and support jobs down to 90 reclassified positions.  Governing

Booksellers for the Post Office. You’ve heard all the gibberish regarding the demise of the post office and the need to privatize the service but guess what? In some areas they are doing better than they ever have! Seattle Post Intelligencer

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Connecting the Dots on PRISM, Phone Surveillance, and the NSA’s Massive Spy Center. The article also sheds light on the enormous privatization not only of the intelligence agencies but now also of Cyber Command, with thousands of people working for little-known companies hired to develop the weapons of cyber war, cyber targeting, and cyber exploitation. The Snowden case demonstrates the potential risks involved when the nation turns its spying and eavesdropping over to companies with lax security and inadequate personnel policies. The risks increase exponentially when those same people must make critical decisions involving choices that may lead to war, cyber or otherwise. Wired

Paul Ryan told me he wants to privatize Medicare but the President won’t let him. I asked Paul Ryan “Congressman how are your plans to privatize Medicare going?”  Assuming I was a supporter he responded “We will need a new President first.”  I told him that “I like our current President, I liked Medicare and hope it will be available for me when I retire.”  He chuckled and I walked on.  Blue Virginia

NE: Lancaster County mental health services privatized. Three private agencies soon will take over mental health services that Lancaster County has been providing for about 3,500 low-income people with serious mental illnesses. San Francisco Chronicle

PA: Legislators Seek to Block Prison Mental Health Services Privatization. A bill that would allow 27 Pennsylvania state prisons to outsource mental health services has encountered heavy opposition from state legislatures who are saying such action would put local communities at risk. Correctional News

PA: Mayor Nutter Prefers Privatization to Public Schools – opinion. The irony of Philadelphia’s turn to privatization is that Philadelphia had the most extensive trial of privatization of any city in the nation about ten years ago. The district schools outperformed the privately managed schools, which lost their contracts. But that predated the charter movement, which is now hyped as having a secret formula to raise test scores at a lower cost. Diane Ravitch’s Blog

LA: After 2 prior vetoes, Jindal signs Medicaid transparency bill. Lawmakers will get more oversight of health care programs privatized by Gov.  Bobby Jindal, after a three-year struggle for the information. The Republic

CA: Save the Arboretum in Golden Gate Park – opinion. Ask any San Franciscans of a certain age about Golden Gate Park, and they will wax on about the days when every museum in the park was free and they could spend a day visiting all of them. Over the years, while still receiving public subsidies, every institution has been privatized and the entry fees raised to ludicrous levels. The latest being the semi-privatized Conservatory of Flowers, which is now employed as a cash cow for the Parks Alliance, an organization funded and controlled by wealthy elites. San Francisco Bay View

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Secrets and privacy both under attack by private sector workers, expers say.  “The privatization of national security work for government is much more extensive today than during the Nixon-Kissinger era,” said John Dean, the former White House counsel who was caught up in the Watergate scandal. New York Daily News

Snowden Fallout Should Trigger Privatization Debate. ‎The debate over whether Snowden is a lawbreaker or treasure has just begun. That’s but a sideshow. A more important debate focused on the privatization of U.S. government functions should also begin. The small government crowd has been dismantling or “right-sizing” government and federal employees for quite some time in the quest to achieve efficiencies…The BAH affair also raises the question about the basic “outsourcing” of national security to the private sector. It doesn’t sit well that a company responsible to the whims of Wall Street is doing the work of the NSA, which is supposed to be the savviest technology unit of federal Washington. O’Dwyer’s PR News           

Pa. liquor privatization drive hits wholesale snag. What may end up derailing the Republicans’ drive to privatize Pennsylvania’s sale of wine and liquor is not who gets to sell it — but who gets to deliver it. The Mercury

LA: Civil service panel agrees to LSU hospital deals. The Civil Service Commission reversed course Monday and agreed to privatization plans for four LSU hospitals, with nearly 4,000 layoffs set to take effect June 23. The commission’s 3-2 vote was the final step needed for Gov. Bobby Jindal to turn over management of university-run hospitals in New Orleans, Lafayette, Houma and Lake Charles to private hospital operators in the local communities. The decision changed course from less than a week earlier, when the commission stalled the plans. NECN

Wal-Mart’s Slow-Motion Privatization. Members of the family have contributed heavily toward efforts to expand charter schools and privatize American education. That doesn’t appear to have changed following the death of John Walton in a 2005 plane crash – in fact it seems to have accelerated.  Seeking Alpha           

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CA: ‘No’ votes take lead on measure to privatize trash service in Fresno. Votes against a measure that would privatize garbage service in Fresno to raise revenue for the cash-strapped California city took a slim lead on Friday as election officials continued counting ballots. Reuters

CA: Power shift possible at Fresno City Hall If trash outsourcing measure fails. This public comeuppance of Fresno’s mayor would take the form of a stunning citywide rejection of her effort to outsource home trash service. Swearengin, who was easily re-elected to a second term last year, invested her political capital in the garbage venture, which now appears headed for defeat at the ballot box. The effect would be to shift power at City Hall to a City Council bloc with Democratic Party roots.  Fresono Bee

NJ: CWA to appeal Christie’s plan to privatize parts of the NJ lottery. New Jersey’s largest public workers union has filed a notice of appeal in state Superior Court in Trenton protesting the Christie administration’s plan to have a private company take over parts of the state lottery. Hunterdon County Democrat

LA: LSU hospital deals pulled from agenda. The LSU Board of Supervisors pulled from its Friday agenda approval of deals that would privatize the operations of LSU hospitals in Bogalusa and Pineville. It is unclear when the agreements with private partners will again come up for board approval. The Advocate

PA: No road funding – letter. I have been a critic of the campaign that the Post-Gazette continues to wage to privatize the Pennsylvania Wine & Spirits stores — a campaign waged in spite of mounting evidence that privatization is bad fiscal and public health policy. However, I have to agree with you that linking privatization with transportation funding is a shortsighted idea. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

IA: Will Shenandoah privatize water/sewer departments? That was the issue at hand during a special meeting of the Shenandoah city council Tuesday. Representatives from PeopleService, as well as the water and wastewater departments addressed the council on the pros and cons of privatizing public services.  SW Iowa News

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OH: The Lessons of the Megalomaniac University President. If you want a glimpse into what has gone wrong with higher education in America, look no further than the brilliant career of E. Gordon Gee, who as of July 1st will be the ex-president of the Ohio State University…If he had been born at another time, Gee might have sold patent medicines or swampy real estate or a new political party. Instead, he spent the last three decades selling the ever-bigger business of American higher ed.  TIME

IL: Chicago Parking Meter Deal: City Council Approves Mayor’s Tweaks To Contract Despite Concerns. The Chicago City Council voted Wednesday to approve a proposed rework of the city’s controversial parking meter deal. The council voted 39-11 in favor of the plan pushed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel. The mayor claims the tweaked plan could save the city $1 billion bills in the years ahead. The City Council’s Finance Committee had already approved the plan in a 14-5 Monday vote. Huffington Post

WI: Voucher changes draw public criticism, private praise. Area public education officials say the proposed statewide school voucher expansion would deal another blow to districts already reeling from past budget cuts. La Crosse Tribune

LA:  Gov. Bobby Jindal signs bill eliminating public’s right to vote on leasing Jefferson hospitals. Gov. Bobby Jindal has signed a bill that eliminates the public’s right to vote on leasing Jefferson Parish’s two hospitals to outside interests, the governor’s office said Wednesday. That leaves only a local ordinance giving voters a direct voice in the current move to privatize West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero and East Jefferson General Hospital in Metairie. NOLA.com

 L: Florida: Court Allows State to Privatize Prisons’ Health Care. The First District Court of Appeals is giving the state’s prison agency the green light to privatize health care services. The court ruled Wednesday that a lower court judge was wrong to block plans for outsourcing in three of Florida’s four prison system regions. The state tried to move ahead with the privatization effort last year, but it was challenged by three unions representing some 2,600 state employees who stand to lose their jobs. A judge in December sided with the union because the privatization plan had been approved by a budget panel instead of the full Legislature. A Department of Corrections spokeswoman said the agency would begin to carry out the privatization effort after the new state budget takes effect on July 1. New York Times

PA: Union Fights Liquor Privatization With New Ads (With Video). The United Food and Commercial Workers Wine and Spirits Council is airing two new television ads with corresponding radio segments as part of their effort to halt GOP plans to privatize the state liquor stores. PoliticsPA           

PA: Fix roads, don’t politicize them – editorial. Privatization is a bad idea and the plan to hold up funds for highways and bridges unless the Senate yields on privatization is a bad idea. The two issues are not remotely connected. Playing politics with roads and bridges — and drivers’ safety — is irresponsible. Whether or not the the liquor stores are privatized is not a life or death issue. We like things the way they are, but Pennsylvanians could live with privatization. The solidity of the state’s infrastructure is an entirely different matter. It has been an issue for many years; delaying action even longer is not a viable option. When the House comes to its senses and passes the roads-and-bridges bill, both it and the Senate will have to beware of politicizing the process. Lancaster Newspapers

Corporate Takeover of Public Education. Independent research in recent months has documented that the nation’s wealthiest philanthropic foundations are steering funding away from public school systems, attended by 90 percent of American students, and toward “challengers” to public education, especially charter schools…. The extent to which these groups will go to supplant the public school system is deeply disturbing. Huffington Post

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LA: Civil Service Commission rejects hospital privatization plans. The state Civil Service Commission on Wednesday narrowly rejected privatization plans for four LSU hospitals that would lead to the layoff of some 3,000 state employees. Some commissioners complained about the lack of information provided by LSU as they were confronted with making such a major decision…. If LSU moves forward with the contracts after a commission denial, the commission would have standing to go to court to file an injunction challenging the pacts, Templet said. The Advocate

LA: Jindal’s Moe, Larry and Curly privatizing Louisiana’s hospitals. Depending upon which source you consult, there are from four to six essential components of a contract that make the document legally binding. The LSU Board of Stuporvisors apparently is unaware of any of them. Bayoubuzz

CA: Slim lead in vote to privatize trash collection in Fresno, Calif. Privatizing the service would raise at least $14 million over several years for Fresno from the company taking on the work from the city. But the shift would cost about 120 city employees their jobs, which prompted city employees’ unions to contest the ballot measure. Reuters

FL: Fla. appeals court approves prison outsourcing. A Florida appeals court is giving the state’s prison agency the green light to privatize health care services. The 1st District Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday that a lower court judge was wrong to block plans for outsourcing in three of Florida’s four prison system regions. A Department of Corrections spokeswoman says the agency will begin to carry out the privatization effort after the new state budget takes effect on July 1. Miami Herald

FL: Alex Friedmann: For-profit prisons are not necessary. In a recent op-ed, “Prison privatization can provide real benefits,” Temple University professors Simon Hakim and Erwin Blackstone discussed their recent research that found cost savings and equal or better performance by for-profit prison companies. …Unfortunately, the professors neglected to mention that their research lauding the benefits of prison privatization was funded by members of the private prison industry, according to a press release issued by Temple University. Likewise, their study itself, which has not been published or peer-reviewed, fails to reveal that it was funded by private prison firms. Sun-Sentinel

PA: Lawmakers pan potential privatization of prison mental health services. A tentative proposal to privatize mental-health services in Pennsylvania’s prisons is drawing opposition in the Legislature. witf.org

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PA: Last hearing on privatizing State Stores highlights sticking points. With the end of Tuesday’s third and final hearing on privatizing the state-run wine and spirits stores – as well as changing the way beer is sold – Gov. Corbett and the legislature now have to figure out whether they can agree on a plan. The clock is ticking. Both sides want to seal a deal before the July 1 deadline for a new state budget. Philly.com

CA: Privatizing UC Instruction. If a controversial, and groundbreaking, bill passes the state legislature this summer, many students at UC Berkeley and other University of California campuses won’t be doing some of their basic coursework on campus anymore. As of next year, they also may be enrolled in classes that aren’t taught by UC faculty. Instead, they will be taking classes online, produced by for-profit companies — and getting full college credit for them….. But opponents of SB 520, including multiple faculty organizations, argue that it will allow for-profit educational companies to gain access to public colleges and universities that they would not otherwise have, and thereby undermine the quality of higher education in California. East Bay Express

CA: Anti-National Park Interests Misled Sonoma City Council. Supporters of the Interior Department’s decision to protect the Point Reyes National Seashore’s ecological heart, Drakes Estero, as the West Coast’s first marine wilderness area today charged that opponents of the Obama Administration’s decision presented “inaccurate and misleading” information to the Sonoma City Council to win approval of a resolution riddled with factual inaccuracies that run counter to established state and federal law. California Majority Report

CA: Fresno trash-privatization vote too close to call. The vote to privatize trash collection in Fresno, Calif., was in a near dead heat late Tuesday night. The results of voting on Measure G, which would outsource the city’s residential waste collection, were too close to call hours after the polls closed. Waste & Recycling News

IN: Opinion: See those Toll Road lane markers? My husband and I drove from Chicago to South Bend in a rainstorm the other night. It was nerve-wracking mostly because the paint on the Indiana Toll Road was very pale and frequently nonexistent. In the state where I came from, this would bring shame on public officials. But how does that work when a public good is in private hands?  South Bend Tribune

LA: Hospital ER goes as part of privatization deal. The Louisiana Legislature has agreed to close the inpatient beds and emergency room at LSU’s hospital in Lake Charles, turning it into an outpatient clinic as part of a planned privatization deal. San Francisco Chronicle

OH: Plan to Privatize Food Services at State Facilities. More than 500 people employed by the state of Ohio are holding their breaths right now, to find out if they’ll have a job come Friday. WKRC

Republicans Decide Socialism Is Awesome After Obama Proposes Privatizing TVA. In fact, the company generates hundreds of millions of dollars of tax-equivalent revenue each year! So obviously our right-wing President Barack Obama has proposed selling off the TVA to the private sector in his 2014 budget proposal, and the socialist Republicans in Congress are hell-bent on stopping him! Wonkette (satire)