January 17, 2012

News summaries
FL: For-profit schools coming – opinion

Make no mistake, there is a determined, coordinated effort to dismantle public schools….The plan is to allow venture capitalists to step in with for-profit virtual schools, cut the costs of traditional public schools, and make bundles of cash …education on the cheap at the expense of children’s education. Who cares that these virtual schools may have a poor or non-existent track record, or that virtual school teachers often have hundreds of students each? While “attending” virtual school, many students have no adult supervision. Profit, not educational excellence, is the motive. The Florida Legislature in the past two sessions has passed a flurry of bills to distract educators and parents by requiring every student to take and pass a college prep curriculum to graduate high school, eliminating teacher tenure, requiring end-of-course exams for every subject taught (without providing funding), and requiring every student to take at least one virtual school class to graduate. This on top of a 30 percent cut in per pupil state funding for local public schools; a reduction of $1,400 per student over the last four years. While public schools are scrambling to comply, privatization schemes continue apace without much public awareness. At the same time the Legislature is handing down these unfunded mandates for public schools, it is expanding a system of corporate vouchers for private schools. Taxpayer money is used to give corporations tax breaks if they will give an equal amount in scholarships for students to attend private schools; an end run around the Florida Supreme Court ruling outlawing vouchers. Gainesville Sun
FL: Augusta considers outsouring human resources services
A company that opened a $40 million Solution Center in Augusta three years ago is offering to solve some of city government’s budget woes, but the solution comes at a price of city jobs. The move will likely spell the end of most, but not all, city human resources jobs, Russell said. The department requested about $1 million from the general fund for salaries and benefits this year. In a year when Russell has asked the commission to trim more than $5 million to balance the city budget and eliminate at least 34 jobs, the human resources department is budgeted more than $1 million for its employee salaries.
The department has dwindled in size in the past few months but had 11 employees in December, according to a roster of all personnel obtained from the department. It has been without a permanent director since the August retirement of Rod Powell, although Powell remains on the payroll as a consultant. Augusta Chronicle

Privatizing the war on terror: Military contractors

…According to the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States can no longer conduct large or sustained military operations or respond to major disasters without heavy support from contractors. As a result, the U.S. employs at a minimum one contractor to support every soldier deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq (that number increases dramatically when U.S. troop numbers decrease). For those signing on for contractor work, many of whom are hired by private contracting firms after serving stints in the military, it is a lucrative, albeit dangerous, career path (private contractors are 2.75 times more likely to die than troops). Incredibly, while base pay for an American soldier hovers somewhere around $19,000 per year, contractors are reportedly pulling in between $150,000 – $250,000 per year. NJ Today

Renewed push for community radio stations
The Federal Communications Commission is expected to start taking applications for the new stations sometime this fall. Philadelphia-based Prometheus Radio Project, which advocates for community stations, is raising awareness of the opportunity and what it believes is the need for more low-power stations that serve narrow audiences, often just neighborhoods. Governing


January 16, 2012

adlines
VA: Gov may abandon his proposal to privatize liquor stores
FL: Senate has new prison privatization proposal
FL: Editorial: Keep public water for public uses
AZ: Legislators approve 2nd private school tuition tax credit
LA: Gov likely to expand school vouchers
Robert Reich: Public institutions suffer as spending falls

News summaries
VA: Gov may abandon his proposal to privatize liquor stores

There was a time when Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell was adamant he would bring back his proposal to privatize the state’s liquor stores. But now, not so much…McDonnell, as he continues to roll out policy proposals for the legislative session, declined to say whether the proposal would return this year or before he leaves the governor’s mansion in 2014.McDonnell’s proposal to dismantle the state’s long-standing monopoly on distilled spirits was killed last year after he spent months lobbying lawmakers and residents. Washington Post

FL: Senate has new prison privatization proposal
After being rebuffed by a judge for its effort to privatize several prisons because of the way lawmakers went about it, the Legislature will try again to shed several prisons, this time doing it in statute. The Senate Rules Committee on Friday quietly released a proposal and scheduled a hearing for this coming Wednesday to discuss the proposed committee bill (SPB 7172), which would require the Department of Corrections to privatize all prisons and other correctional facilities in 18 counties in the Southern half of the state…The bill would require the department to privatize all prison facilities, including annexes, prisons, and work release centers in Manatee, Hardee, Indian River, Okeechobee, Highlands, St. Lucie, DeSoto, Sarasota, Charlotte, Glades, Martin, Palm Beach, Hendry, Lee, Collier, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties.  Orlando Sentinel

FL: Editorial: Keep public water for public uses
Florida law considers treated wastewater a public resource. Cities sell reclaimed water to residents to irrigate lawns or to commercial enterprises for industrial uses. Reclaimed is also used to recharge the aquifer and to keep saltwater from creeping into fresh, inland waters. The public benefits are direct: Users get a cheaper water source and entire regions of the state draw less from ground and surface waters, helping to preserve Florida’s natural habitat. But HB 639 expressly exempts reclaimed water as a state asset. It transfers control of reclaimed to the utilities that produce it, effectively ending any oversight role by the regional water management districts. The water would no longer have to be used for a public purpose, and cities and utilities could sell it to whomever they chose. This is a radical policy change that is completely at odds with why reclaimed was developed as an alternative resource in the first place…Young’s bill undermines a decades-long effort to manage Florida’s water supply in a more sustainable, comprehensive way. It is a wholesale giveaway of a precious public asset that could easily provide more than one-fourth of the state’s water needs. It is unfortunate that Tampa is supporting the legislation for its own self-interest; Young would better serve her district and the state by creating incentives to expand the reclaimed distribution system. That would be far better than privatizing water. Tampa Bay Times

AZ: Legislators approve 2nd private school tuition tax credit
State lawmakers moved Thursday to let Arizonans divert more of what they owe in taxes to help students attend private and parochial schools, and to ease the legal requirements for those schools.  East Valley Tribune

LA: Gov likely to expand school vouchers
When Gov. Bobby Jindal pushed through New Orleans’ school-voucher program four years ago, political interest in using taxpayer money to send students to private schools had waned across the country. School-choice advocates had suffered several stinging defeats, causing some to throw their weight behind charter schools, which generally receive more bipartisan support. Now, as officials expect Jindal to begin an effort to expand Louisiana’s voucher program, the national landscape has changed dramatically. Although charter schools continue to dwarf vouchers in terms of overall growth, vouchers have rebounded on the national political and educational scene in the last year. In 2011, more than 30 states introduced bills that would use taxpayer dollars to send children to privately run schools, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. That’s up more than 300 percent from the previous year, when only nine voucher bills were introduced…Jindal would join the scores of GOP governors and lawmakers who have proposed new or expanded voucher programs in recent months, taking advantage of Republican majorities gained in the 2010 elections.  The Times-Picayune

Robert Reich: Public institutions suffer as spending falls
A society is embodied most visibly in public institutions – public schools, public libraries, public transportation, public hospitals, public parks, public museums, public recreation, public universities and so on.
But much of what’s called “public” today is increasingly private…Much of the rest of what’s considered “public” has become so shoddy that those who can afford to do so find private alternatives. As public schools deteriorate, the upper middle-class and wealthy send their kids to private ones. ..Yet in recent years, the idea of the public good has faded. “We’re all in it together” has been replaced by “you’re on your own” – as global capital outsources American jobs abroad, the very rich take home an almost unprecedented portion of total earnings, and a new wave of immigrants is described by demagogues as “them.” Not even Democrats still use the phrase “the public good.” Public goods are now, at best, “public investments.” Public institutions have morphed into “public-private partnerships” or, for Republicans, simply “vouchers.” Mitt Romney speaks derisively of what he terms the Democrats’ “entitlement” society in contrast to his “opportunity” society. At least he still envisions a society. But he hasn’t explained how ordinary Americans will be able to take advantage of good opportunities without good public schools, affordable higher education, good roads and adequate health care…Only in one respect is Romney right. America has created a whopping entitlement – for the biggest Wall Street banks and their top executives, who, unlike most of the rest of us, are no longer allowed to fail. We’re losing public goods available to all, supported by the tax payments of all and especially the better-off. In its place, we have private goods available to the very rich, supported by the rest of us. Even Lady Thatcher would have been appalled. San Francisco Chronicle

January 13, 2012

Headlines
Toll road woes show risk of loans lawmakers aim to expand
NY: Lawmaker asks AG to investigate privatization of Nassau sewage plants
ID: Idaho striving to privatize liquor
AZ: Legislators approve 2nd private school tuition tax credit
IL: Chicago will pay big time during upcoming parking lockdown
NJ: Law lets private companies to build schools in needy areas
CA: Government privatization talk scheduled
CO: Task force members grill Pinnacol CEO about privatization plan

News summaries
Toll road woes show risk of loans lawmakers aim to expand

Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress are united in pushing an eightfold boost to a loan program designed to attract private highway funding, even as revenue gaps in existing projects may cause taxpayer losses. Of the six open highways backed by the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, one reorganized in bankruptcy at an upfront cost to taxpayers of $79.5 million; a second probably needs its debt restructured, and the rating on a third is six notches below investment grade, according to Fitch Ratings reports and government records. A Senate panel chaired by California Democrat Barbara Boxer has approved a proposal to increase TIFIA’s funding to $1 billion a year and allow it to cover almost half of a project’s costs. Representative John Mica, a Florida Republican who leads the House transportation committee, has said he plans to press for a similar measure to help offset a six-year decline in tax revenue for new roads. “People are treating this like it’s free money, but it isn’t, and it’s not without risk,” said Robert Puentes, an analyst with the Washington-based Brookings Institution, a nonprofit public-policy organization. “The risk involved here is a sleeper issue which needs to get much more attention as they move to expand the program.” Bloomberg

NY: Lawmaker asks AG to investigate privatization of Nassau sewage plants
County Legislator Dave Denenberg, of the 19th District, announced his request for State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to investigate the legality of County Executive Edward Mangano’s plan to privatize the county’s sewage treatment plants… He said his request is on behalf of several residents regarding the sale or lease of the county’s sewage treatment plants and infrastructure, with concerns that the deal is a “‘one shot budget gimmick’ that will result in higher sewage charges to taxpayers and less public oversight of this vital county function and environmental issue.” Denenberg also calls into question a contract between Nassau County and Morgan Stanley regarding the privatization deal. “The contract, for which Morgan Stanley will be paid $100,000 per quarter, is for the evaluation and assessment of the county’s sewage treatment plants and disposal infrastructure for the purpose of preparing bid documents to sell the plants to a private company,” said Denenberg. “The county’s financial control board, NIFA, has already criticized the plan because instead of retiring debt, the proceeds of the sale will be used as one-shot revenue.” “I request an investigation into this process whether state municipal laws and/or regulations with respect to proper bidding processes and proper contracting processes were violated. Levitttown Tribune

ID: Idaho striving to privatize liquor 
Idaho could be the next state to privatize liquor sales, right behind Washington. In November, Washington voters said “yes” to taking liquor sales out of the hands of the government. Just as Costco pushed the initiative in Washington, the grocery industry is pushing to privatize liquor in Idaho. Enoteca is a business in Post Falls that offers more than a thousand bottles of wine. They hope the initiative will be passed in Idaho and their inventory will expand. KXLY Spokane

AZ: Legislators approve 2nd private school tuition tax credit
State lawmakers moved Thursday to let Arizonans divert more of what they owe in taxes to help students attend private and parochial schools, and to ease the legal requirements for those schools. East Valley Tribune

IL: Chicago will pay big time during upcoming parking lockdown
The 75-year, $1.15 billion lease that privatized Chicago parking meters requires the city to compensate the concessionaire – at the newly increased downtown rate of $5.75 an hour – whenever metered spaces are temporarily taken out of commission.  In the case of the May 19-21 event expected to draw President Barack Obama and other world leaders to McCormick Place, that compensation could be substantial. On Wednesday, host committee spokeswoman Jennifer Martinez acknowledged that access to the Loop would be restricted, and motorists would be temporarily inconvenienced. She further acknowledged that Chicago Parking Meters LLC would have to be compensated for lost revenue tied to scores of metered downtown spaces.  Chicago Sun-Times

NJ: Law lets private companies to build schools in needy areas
Gov. Chris Christie today signed the first of what he hopes will be a series of education reforms: a measure giving private nonprofit companies the authority to build a total of 12 schools in Newark, Camden and Trenton.  The Star-Ledger

CA: Government privatization talk scheduled
The League of Women Voters will meet at 1 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16, to discuss the privatization of governmental services, assets and functions. The discussion will include how privatization of government services, functions and assets works; if it is cost-effective; and the pros and cons of such action. The purpose of the talk is to identify policies and parameters that should be considered when any governmental entity is planning to undertake some type of privatization process. It will review the stated goals and the community impact of such transfers, and identify strategies to ensure transparency, accountability, and preservation of the common good. The Herald-Dispatch

CO: Task force members grill Pinnacol CEO about privatization plan
Pinnacol Assurance executives have spent more than two months touting their proposal to make the state-chartered workers’ compensation insurer a private company. A task force appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper is expected to send its opinions and analysis of the plan to him in early February. The task force won’t be voting to recommend for or against the privatization plan. Colorado businesses have so far appeared reluctant to back the plan — an important critiquing group, as Pinnacol insures roughly 57 percent of all companies in the state. Denver Business Journal

January 12, 2012

Headlines
AZ: Gov Brewer wants to buy back privatized state buildings
IN: Judge to consider Gov’s testimony over cancelled IBM contract
NJ: Christie to sign bill to privatize some schools
NC: NAACP seeks to block for-profit charter schools
MI: A rallying cry against privatization in St. Clair


News summaries
AZ: Gov Brewer wants to buy back privatized state buildings

Citing the state’s upcoming 100th birthday, Gov. Jan Brewer on Monday asked lawmakers to buy back three buildings at the Capitol that were mortgaged off two years ago to balance the budget. The move will cost the state $105 million out of its current budget surplus. Benson acknowledged the state actually got only $81 million for the state House, the Senate and the nine-story executive tower that includes Brewer’s office when it negotiated a “sale-leaseback” arrangement in 2010…When Arizona borrowed the money two years ago, it essentially promised investors they would get interest for at least 10 years. Hence the $105 million price tag. Yuma Sun

IN: Judge to consider Gov’s testimony over cancelled IBM contract
The Indiana Supreme Court today agreed to hear arguments from Gov. Mitch Daniels’ attorneys that the governor should not be required to appear for a deposition as part of a civil lawsuit between the state and IBM…Attorneys for IBM want to question Daniels as part of a lawsuit brought by the company over the state’s cancellation of the computer company’s contract to modernize the state’s welfare application process…IBM had won a $1.37 billion, 10-year contract to modernize the state’s welfare system. But after numerous complaints from the public and from lawmakers about an error-riddled system that left people without the help they needed, Daniels canceled the contract in 2009. The state sued IBM in May 2010 to recoup the $437 million it had paid the company; IBM countersued saying the state has some of its property and that it is still owed about $100 million. IndyStar

NJ: Christie to sign bill to privatize some schools
Gov. Chris Christie is planning to sign his first major education reform bill, which would allow publicly funded private schools in three New Jersey cities. The Democrat-controlled Legislature moved quickly on the bill even though it has been slow to act on Christie’s other school overhaul plans.  6abc

NC: NAACP seeks to block for-profit charter schools
The emergence of for-profit charter schools is drawing fire in North Carolina. The Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP sent a letter to the North Carolina State Board of Education last month to block the application for Howard and Lillian Lee Scholars Charter School, which is on the fast track to open in August. According to its application, the school would serve up to 723 students in grades K-8. The charter school would partner with National Heritage Academies, a for-profit company that got its start in Grand Rapids, Mich., to manage day-to-day school operations…Of the five charter schools managed by NHA in North Carolina only one – Greensboro Academy – made Adequate Yearly Progress last school year, school report cards show. “It’s not about the ethnic background of the kids,” Campbell said. “We’re talking about the whole total concept of the complete package does not show that students from an NHA school perform any better than children in our school system.” A statement from the Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP read: “The Lees have done some great things for our children. But we believe they failed to do their homework in checking out the track record of the Grand Rapids, Michigan for-profit corporation, the National Heritage Academies Inc. (NHA). This proposal comes at the wrong time, at the wrong place, from the wrong ultra-right outfit. It is unnecessary.” Charlotte Post

MI: A rallying cry against privatization in St. Clair
City workers contend that privatizing key city departments in St. Clair is wrong and will damage the level of service residents deserve and have come to expect. ..”I would like to respond to the issue of privatizing public services here in St. Clair by reminding you of who we are and what we do,” said Dale Kaufman, Chapter Chair and a longtime employee in the city’s water plant. “We are employees working at the water plant, the waste water plant and the department of public services… We know what the people living here in the city of St. Clair expect and we work tirelessly to meet those expectations.” The city council voted unanimously on Dec. 19 to direct City Superintendent Scott Adkins to obtain bids to outsource or privatize specific city services – police, water, sewer and public works – with an eye toward cutting costs. Anticipating a fourth consecutive year of falling property tax revenue, the council is looking to slash as much as $350,000 from the city’s budget for fiscal year 2012-2013. Councilmember Tom Foley introduced the proposal and Jane Krebs seconded it. The Voice

January 11, 2011

News summaries
NY: A Tapan Zee public-private partnership? Not just yet

“At this moment in time, we don’t have the leg    as they are technically defined in transportation projects,” Madison said. “So right now, the plan is that the Tappan Zee Bridge will be a publicly financed project.” This is the first time since Governor Cuomo’s October announcement of fast-tracked Tappan Zee plans that New York has said the bridge will be paid for with public dollars. In his State of the State speech, Governor Cuomo advocated for public-private partnerships to repair New York’s infrastructure, but Streetsblog reports that the legislature would have to sanction the novel financing mechanism if it were to be used in the Tappan Zee project. Mobilizing the Region

IL: Rockford City Council votes 8-5 to outsource street sweeping
The Rockford City Council’s 8-5 vote to outsource street sweeping wasn’ta nail-biter, but it was close and likely will serve as a reflection of challenges to come. Five Democratic aldermen voted to reject the bid from Elgin Sweeping Services, but the remaining eight aldermen — a combination of Democrats, Republicans and an independent — voted in favor of the nearly $300,000 annual contract…City leaders say the real savings will come in the ability to get the streets swept by an outside company while moving seven of its own employees to other areas of need, such as forestry…Union members were disappointed that the council chose to not debate the issue one last time before the final vote, said Local 1058 President Gary Cacciapaglia. Concerns about Elgin Sweeping Services’ safety record and alleged civil rights violations merited discussion, Cacciapaglia said, as did the union’s concerns about quality and loyalty. “When we look at what is best for our community, it isn’t always about dollars. It’s about the quality of services for our citizens, too,” Cacciapaglia said. “I don’t want to be standing here a year from now and talk to the same group about keeping forestry jobs. That’s the issue here. We feel like there’s a price tag on our heads. If anybody walks along and can do it any cheaper, we are out the door.” Rockford Register Star

NC: Private prisons profit – opinion
Though depicted as cost-saving efficient operations, independent studies suggest the contrary. A lack of regulation enables smaller staff and inadequate training, in turn, producing more violence and unstable conditions among those who “serve time.” Sustainable medical care has also come into question. Private prisons like the George W. Hill Center, Walnut Grove Youth Facility and New Castle Correctional Institute have garnered a barrage of scrutiny over the deaths of dozens of inmates. And though touted as inexpensively designed, private prisons have proven just as costly to construct. The same companies grossing billions from the capture and incarceration of Americans (mostly poor, black and Latino) are the same brokers who donate millions to state senators, school boards, mayors and police chiefs. It’s no secret that private firms such as The GEO Group possess direct appeal to federal legislation like “Three Strikes” and Mandatory Minimum Sentencing. Common sense says such merging complexities spell corruption – political dividends too close for public comfort. Fact is, we as Americans aren’t committing more crime; we’re doing more time because it pays. In a way, such structural manipulation is almost worse than slavery, considering America’s global claim to moral democracy at its highest order – an order not far removed, it seems, from Nazi Germany’s concentration camps at Warsaw and Auschwitz. We’re talking “Third World” sweatshops disguised as rehab programs, possibly in your home state! The Durham News

January 10, 2012

Headlines
CA: Demise of redevelopment ends privatization of local governments, critic says
PA: Auditor general says charter school illegally funneled money to church
TX: New bill boosts public-private projects
AZ: Gov wants to revamp public education funding, expand private school options
ME: Lack of interest kills bill to allow private prisons
NJ: Senate approves bill to allow private companies to manage schools in poor cities
NJ: Editorial: NJEA support for private management of public schools displays weakness, cynicism
NJ: Montville library board to hear from privatization company
National Weather Service in dispute over privatization of mobile app development

News summaries
CA: Demise of redevelopment ends privatization of local governments, critic says

With redevelopment agencies possibly going the way of prohibition, city officials from around the state are saying the change will rip away their main tool to fix blighted areas. But to foes of redevelopment – who range from libertarians to left-leaning academics – the decision means something different. To them, the decision last week by the California Supreme Court to abolish redevelopment agencies turns off a spigot of power and money they say has polluted the spirit of civic duty and altruism that should guide public service. Under redevelopment, billion-dollar corporations courted the favor of small-time suburban politicians, said Victor M. Valle, a fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University who formerly worked as a reporter at the Los Angeles Times. “There’s such a strong incentive for a City Council to play along,” he said. “It’s just power and money, not really ideology. These council members get to be the arbiter of how money is spent, lots of money. That in itself is seductive. All of a sudden, just think about who surrounds you. You enter a whole different society.” The California Supreme Court last week ruled that the state government had the authority to end redevelopment agencies and reclaim the taxes that were being captured by cities. The agencies are to be dissolved by Feb. 1. Whittier Daily News

PA: Auditor general says charter school funneled money to church

A Monroe County charter school has violated the state charter school law by having “improper entanglements” with a church run by the school’s founder, according to a preliminary report issued by the state auditor general’s office. The report, obtained by The Morning Call, says the Pocono Mountain Charter School in Tobyhanna also may have illegally diverted taxpayer money to adjacent Shawnee Tabernacle Church. It also may have improperly received $87,101 from the state in rental reimbursements for its building lease agreement with the church. The Morning Call

TX:New bill boosts public-private projects
The Texas Legislature passed the Public and Private Facilities and Infrastructure Act last May, and it became law in September, but few know about it. The act encourages and provides more oversight for public-private partnerships in Texas – an arrangement where private entities share the costs, risks and profits of public projects…Possibly the best-known public-private partnership, or P3, in Texas is Cowboys Stadium. The behemoth is owned by the City of Arlington and leased by the Dallas Cowboys, owned by Jerry Jones…Generally, the new code applies to the construction of buildings, and does not apply to the state highway system. “The bill adds transparency and a framework to enable these kinds of projects,” Wood said. “You could do them before, but, because it wasn’t black and white on the books, there was a real reluctance to do that.”..One reason the legislation remains mostly unknown is that it met virtually no opposition. El Paso Inc.

AZ: Gov wants to revamp public education funding, expand private school options
Gov. Jan Brewer will propose a major revamp of how the state funds schools, a move that could make more cash available for private and parochial schools…Brewer told the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the current funding system has not kept pace, with public schools getting a fixed amount of money for each student enrolled. A similar system exists for state aid to universities and community colleges. “Whether it’s K-12, community college or university classrooms, we can no longer afford to reward institutions for merely finding students to occupy desks for part of the day or part of the year,” she said. “Instead, we must invest our resources to fund the schools and support the teachers who deliver the results for our children, no matter the educational setting.”…In fact, there actually could be less money available for public schools if lawmakers approve an expansion of existing programs that allow individuals to divert some of what they would otherwise pay in income taxes to instead help students attend private and parochial schools. East Valley Tribune

ME: Lack of interest kills bill to allow private prisons
A bill to allow a privately run prison in Maine, carried over from last year’s session in hopes of addressing the needs of aging inmates with more medical concerns, was killed Monday after lawmakers were told no one is interested in running such a facility.  Bangor Daily News

NJ: Senate approves bill to allow private companies to manage schools in poor cities
A bill backed by Gov. Chris Christie that allows private companies to build and manage up to a dozen public schools in three of the state’s poorest cities was approved by the state Senate 34-3 today.  The Star-Ledger

NJ: Editorial: NJEA support for private management of public schools displays weakness, cynicism
New Jersey is about to take a giant step toward opening public schools to profit-making management companies, and the effort has a most unlikely supporter — the New Jersey Education Association. In a move that displays either its weakness or cynicism — or both — the state’s largest teachers’ union has joined forces with archenemy Gov. Chris Christie and the powerful Camden County Democratic machine of George Norcross to endorse the “Urban Hope Act,” which would allow private companies to build and manage public schools using taxpayer money. “We have always supported public school choice,’’ said Ginger Gold Schnitzer, the NJEA’s chief lobbyist…The union’s reversal of position came after the bill was amended to guarantee bargaining and tenure rights for teachers in privately managed schools — as many as 12 so-called “renaissance schools” slated for Newark, Camden and Trenton. But the NJEA endorsed the proposed law while it still contained a provision that would require direct public financing of the construction of schools managed by private firms along with an exemption from competitive bidding laws. That part of the law was excised — the companies will have to find private financing for constructing their schools, but they will be able to pay back those loans with school aid, public money. They still will not have to comply with bidding laws and the private firms will have access to publicly-purchased land, including an $11 million tract in Camden that George Norcross has sought in the past for a charter school. The Star-Ledger

NJ: Montville library board to hear from privatization company

The Montville Township Public Library Board of Trustees is expected to hear a presentation in the coming months by a company that provides library outsourcing for communities as a possible way of lowering expenses. ay of lowering expenses. Library Systems & Services LLC, or LSSI, a Germantown, Md.-based company that was founded in 1981, was scheduled to give a presentation at the board’s Monday meeting, but had to reschedule to March or April, said library board member and Township Committeeman Don Kostka. The presentation would address how the library would change if LSSI was hired, including what would happen to existing staff, what interaction would exist between LSSI and the Board of Trustees, what would happen to union employees and benefits, how LSSI would develop programs and work with different age groups, and how working with LSSI would affect the library’s collection, interaction with the community and accounting systems, Kostka said. Patch.com

National Weather Service in dispute over privatization of mobile app development
The National Weather Service is in a dispute with its own employees over whether the service has gone too far in promoting the privatization of weather-related applications using federal data. NWS leadership put out a memo in December suspending staff development of mobile applications because the private sector development of such apps has been robust and many of the offerings have been available to the public at little or no charge, according to a Jan. 9 article by Andrew Freedman in the Washington Post. However, Dan Sobien, director of the National Weather Service Employees Union, said that the agency should not be quick to give up development of mobile applications because distributing weather data to the public is one of its core missions. That mission eventually could be hampered if the public needs to sign into, and pay for, access to critical weather data through private mobile apps, the argument goes. FCW.com

 

January 9, 2012

Headlines
NY: Sweet golf course deal gives The Donald free ride for 4 years
NY: State’s infrastructure plan leans heavily on private investments
NY: New York poised to make major management changes
FL: Outlook for state workers remains poor
CA: Fresno’s trashy battle: Saying NO to the mayor
NJ: Private-public schools bill advances
OH: Families worry over possible privatization services for disabled

News summaries
NY: Sweet golf course deal gives The Donald free ride for 4 years

Looks like the Donald trumped the city in bidding for a 20-year deal to run a $97 million taxpayer-funded public golf course long considered a Bronx boondoggle. Under a proposed deal with the Parks Department, the oft-delayed 18-hole course will bear the billionaire developer’s name when it opens in spring 2014: Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point Park. For its first four years of operation, he will have no financial obligation to the city — and in year five, the compensation will only be $300,000, the Daily News found. In contrast, a hot dog vendor agreed three years ago to pay the city more than $600,000 annually for a lease to peddle tube steaks outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A review of the proposed Trump agreement also shows “The Apprentice” puppet-master received city approval to run the public course as a part-time private playground. The ex-presidential hopeful would control 20% of the weekday tee times for private use without any Parks Department oversight. Trump could also close the facility for private use for a full day if he receives an okay from city parks officials….“It’s outrageous that the public is paying to build a championship golf course for Donald Trump,” said Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates. “We will never make back our investment. You can’t make this stuff up.” New York Daily News

NY: State’s infrastructure plan leans heavily on private investments
Gov. Andrew Cuomo will be hoping for heavy private investments to fund his plans to repair the state’s aging infrastructure and upgrade its power grid. Cuomo outlined plans in his State of the State address Wednesday to partner with the private sector to fund road and bridge repairs and expand its power production. “The task for us is to find leverage with private-sector partners,” Cuomo said. In a weak economy with depressed production, it’s unclear whether companies and investors will be rushing to the state’s aid. His plans haven’t been detailed and could take years to develop, particularly a new energy system, industry experts said. “It’s not stuff that’s easily done,” said Jerry Kremer, chairman of the state Affordable Reliable Electricity Alliance, a New York City-based business group. Cuomo outlined a $25 billion package Wednesday, including $1 billion for Buffalo, $4 billion in private investment for a Queens convention center, and $15 billion in public and private funding for roads and bridges. Cuomo wants to fast-track at least some of the road work, including a $5 billion replacement of the 56-year-old Tappan Zee Bridge in the Hudson Valley. Democrat and Chronicle

NY: New York poised to make major management changes
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo promised major alterations in both the organization of the public workforce and the day-to-day operations of state agencies. Recommendations range from consolidating agencies with duplicative functions to changes in hiring and performance management protocols. The commission projected significant workforce reductions, raising opposition from some public employee union leaders. Merging transportation-related agencies and authorities would allow the state to reduce its workforce by 450 to 600 full-time employees by 2016, while centralizing back-office functions would allow a reduction of 840 full-time employees. Public Employees Federation President Ken Brynien said in a statement that “if implemented without safeguards in place (the recommendations) could lead to layoffs, increased reliance on costly contracting-out and privatization, and would weaken the civil service merit and fitness system, opening the door to increased patronage and cronyism.”  Stateline

FL:Outlook for state workers remains poor
Gov. Rick Scott and Republican legislative leaders, who promised to run state government like a business, will be working to inject some private-sector competitiveness into state employment during the 2012 legislative session. After a year of layoffs, no pay raises and a 3-percent required retirement-contribution bite into employee paychecks, Big Bend legislators would like to leave state workers alone this year. There won’t be anything like the privatization push, job cuts or pension changes of 2011, but leadership still wants wages and working conditions for state employees to more closely resemble conditions the typical Florida taxpayer faces on the job…For a sixth straight year, the pending state budget provides no general pay raises for state employees. Instead, Scott proposed one-time bonus payments of up to $5,000 for outstanding employees, with agencies allowed to designate up to 35 percent of their workers for some level of payments. It’s a competitive approach that interests state Rep. Marti Coley, R-Marianna, an instructor at Chipola State College. Tallahassee Democrat

CA: Fresno’s trashy battle: Saying NO to the mayor
With signs and slogans they showed up, they say, to let the public know exactly what they think of the recent privatization of city trash services to local businesses. Critics say rates for commercial trash services have gone up by as much as 5% since a private company took over the city’s commercial waste services last month. What they don’t want, says demonstrator Joe Garcia, is to see the same thing happen to homeowners. “I’m a rate payer. I’m a homeowner. I don’t want my rates going up, and I’m sure a lot of people in the city don’t want the same so I think they just really need to pay attention to what’s happening in the city,” Garcia said. Mayor Swearingen has commissioned a study to look into also privatizing residential waste services. The move could potentially bring several million dollars in yearly franchise fees to the city. KMPH Fox 26

NJ: Private-public schools bill advances
A bill that paves a legal path toward new public-private schools in three cities – including the Lanning Square Elementary School in Camden – passed two legislative committees Thursday. Asbury Park Press

OH: Families worry over possible privatization services for disabled
Some families in Union County are worried over the county’s plan to partially privatize some of the services offered by the Union County Board of Developmental Disabilities. Under a current plan the Union County Board of Developmental Disabilities (UCBDD) could privatize a portion of its services by January 1, 2013. For Tammy Basil, the change would be devastating. Basil’s son Michael relies on the support staff for help through a county program that allows him to have a job. Michael, 22, has autism and his mom says he has “multiple disabilities.” He lives away from his parents and is employed helping to put together car manuals for Honda. Basil and her husband Mark spoke out at a meeting with Union County’s Board of Developmental Disabilities Thursday night in Marysville. The focus of the meeting was to address concerns over privatization that would mean cutting 19 current employees. Those employees work with people with disabilties as they integrate into the work force…The county has lost $500,000 in revenue from the Tangible Personal Property Tax. Miller said he believes the county has seen its peak in terms of revenue income and must now prepare how to handle more services with less money.  NBC4i.com

January 6, 2012

News summaries
WY: Poll: Wyo entrepreneurs against privatization of key services

Wyoming members of the National Federation of Independent Business don’t want key state services, such as public highways or the state-run workers’ compensation insurance, to be privatized, according to a recent poll. When asked if Wyoming should privatize some public highways, roads, tunnels and bridges, 76 percent said “no,” 14 percent replied “yes” and 10 percent were undecided. When asked if the Wyoming Workers’ Safety and Compensation Division should be privatized, 62 percent said “no,” 16 percent said “yes” and 22 percent were undecided. Wyoming Business Report

NJ: NJ public-private schools bill clears legislative committees
A bill that paves a legal path toward new public-private schools in three cities — including Lanning Square Elementary School in Camden — passed two legislative committees Thursday. The Democratic-sponsored bill was amended to overcome Republicans objections, though a legal advocate for low-income students threatened to bring a lawsuit to stop the program if the bill becomes law. The Urban Hope Act would allow for up to four privately operated public schools to be authorized and built each in Newark, Trenton and Camden. Asbury Park Press

MI: Bedford residents angry about possible privatization
Diana Binkley believes the Bedford school community is under fire and pressures from privatization rumors are causing a riff. “You are driving a wedge in this community,” Ms. Binkley said during a school board meeting Thursday. “We need to work together and get back to the basics of educating our children.” Ms. Binkley, along with a dozen others, spoke out against one of the best practices Bedford Public Schools has met in order to receive more money from the state.  The district will likely be awarded an additional $100 per pupil for meeting four of five “best practices.” The practices include being the designated policy holder for medical benefits; develop and implement a service consolidation plan; provide on the district’s Web site information about financial and academic data. The practice that has fired up employees and community members alike is obtaining bids on non-instructional services such as custodial, food service and transportation. Connie Boyland is a media specialist from Traverse City who attended the meeting to speak specifically on the topic. “If you privatize, you will lose control over what you once had control over before,” Ms. Boyland said. “People trust you to do what is right. These people here care about your students and you should maintain their jobs.”Monroe News

Robert Reich: The decline of the American public good
Much of what’s called “public” is increasingly a private good paid for by users — ever-higher tolls on public highways and public bridges, higher tuitions at so-called public universities, higher admission fees at public parks and public museums.   Much of the rest of what’s considered “public” has become so shoddy that those who can afford to find private alternatives. As public schools deteriorate, the upper-middle class and wealthy send their kids to private ones. As public pools and playgrounds decay, they buy memberships in private tennis and swimming clubs. As public hospitals decline, they pay premium rates for private care. Gated communities and office parks now come with their own manicured lawns and walkways, security guards, and backup power systems. Why the decline of public institutions? The financial squeeze on government at all levels since 2008 explains only part of it. The slide really started more than three decades ago with so-called “tax revolts” by a middle class whose earnings had stopped advancing even though the economy continued to grow. Most families still wanted good public services and institutions but could no longer afford the tab.  From that time onward, almost all the gains from growth have gone to the top. But as the upper middle class and the rich began shifting to private institutions, they withdrew political support for public ones. In consequence, their marginal tax rates dropped — setting off a vicious cycle of diminishing revenues and deteriorating quality, spurring more flight from public institutions. Tax revenues from corporations also dropped as big companies went global — keeping their profits overseas and their tax bills to a minimum. Christian Science Monitor

January 5, 2012

Headlines
PBS chief defends public TV against Romney’s call for end to public funding
IL: Parents sit-in at Chicago mayor’s office over public schools
CA: Outsourcing’s effects on government transparency
NE: Child welfare reform to occupy Unicam
MA: New mayor looks to privatize Methuen IT department
WA: Privatizing the lottery is “a gamble that won’t pay off”
MN: Cash-strapped MN town hires private guards for policing duties

News summaries
PBS chief defends public TV against Romney’s call for end to public funding

PBS chief Paula Kerger said Wednesday that she recognizes the United States has to make tough budget decisions but defended PBS as an effective public-private partnership. Kerger says that while she can make the argument, elected officials listen to to their constituents. Romney has criticized public funding for PBS while campaigning for the GOP presidential nomination. He has said he doesn’t intend to “kill Big Bird” of “Sesame Street” but that public TV shows will have to become ad-supported. Kerger says that federal rules governing public broadcasting prohibit commercials. She adds that commercial TV channels are notably different than PBS and contrasts History Channel’s “American Pickers” with a Ken Burns’ documentary. Washington Post

IL: Parents sit-in at Chicago mayor’s office over public schools
Community, teachers begin sit-in outside Mayor Emanuel’s City Hall office demanding an end to threatened school closings, turnarounds, phase outs and other attacks on public schools. More than 200 people ranging in age from infants to senior citizens in their 70s began a sit-in outside the fifth floor City Hall office of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel at noon on January 4, 2012. The sit-in, organized by KOCO (the Kenwood Oakland Community Organization) and a number of allied community groups, teachers, parent and religious leaders, promises to remain at City Hall until Emanuel rescinds the threat of school closings and turnarounds this school year. Substance News

CA: Outsourcing’s effects on government transparency
While cities like Costa Mesa and Santa Ana consider outsourcing numerous city services to the private sector, open-government advocates say that unless cities require companies to disclose records related to those services, members of public wouldn’t be entitled to them under state law. “The public is entitled to have access to relevant information … about a corporation’s performance of these previously governmental functions,” said Peter Scheer, executive director of the First Amendment Coalition. Not requiring disclosure of the relevant records, he said, “would hinder accountability and transparency. Those companies are not in the business of accountability and transparency to the public.” The decades-long trend toward outsourcing services at all levels of government has gathered momentum in recent years as the recession has wreaked havoc on traditional sources of government revenue. Voice of OC

NE: Child welfare reform to occupy Unicam
Gov. Dave Heineman authorized a privatization of child welfare services that began in 2009 in an attempt to improve care and save on state expenses. That effort, Schumacher said, “has not gone terribly well” as a report from State Auditor Mike Foley revealed overspending and a lack of management. Child welfare advocacy groups have decried the governor’s move. In his 152-page report issued four months ago, Foley said the state spent millions more than expected and failed to provide accountability for these costs in its attempt to partially privatize the child welfare system. Costs went up 27 percent from 2009 to 2011, growing from $107.7 million to $136.5 million, the report showed. To overhaul the system now would likely take even more money, Schumacher said – “more money we don’t have.”
“It’s going to be very difficult,” the Columbus attorney said. “Once you try to go down a road of privatization it’s really hard to put it in reverse. But if it isn’t working, it’s really not smart to go forward either.” Columbus Telegram

MA: New mayor looks to privatize Methuen IT department
An effort to privatize the city Information Technology department is gaining momentum and appears to be an early priority for Mayor Stephen Zanni…That could mean hiring a private company to build and maintain an IT network for the city and offer employees technical support, or leasing — rather than purchasing — computers and other hardware at City Hall, which Zanni said are now old and in need of replacement…Zanni is reviewing all municipal departments as he takes over for former Mayor William Manzi and he said the IT department is first on his list. “I’m going to look at every single department,” said Zanni. “It’s going to take a little time over the next few months.” Eaglet Tribune

WA: Privatizing the lottery is “a gamble that won’t pay off”
Liberal former state Rep. Brendan Williams—who quit the legislature to protest what he saw as a lack of leadership in the Democratic Party—argues in The Stand today that Gov. Chris Gregoire’s proposal to privatize the state lottery is “a gamble that won’t pay off,” arguing that efforts at privatization in other states have lined politicians’ and lobbyists’ pockets while doing little to boost states’ bottom lines. Publicola

MN: Cash-strapped MN town hires private guards for policing duties

A small Minnesota town is set to embark on a radical civic experiment: replacing cops with a private security force.  Yesterday, wearing uniforms and carrying sidearms, security guards began doing 24-hour patrols every day of the week on the shady streets of Foley, a community of 2,600 surrounded by farmland, northeast of St. Cloud. The cost-saving move has triggered worry among some that town leaders may have gone too far, taking some life-or-death responsibilities out of the hands of those with the legal authority to enforce the law….Foley is the first town in Minnesota and one of a few nationally to try relying solely on private guards for street patrols. The Daily

January 4, 2012

Headlines
IL: Chicago, ugly urban parable of privatization
IN:A gathering storm over ‘right to work’ in Indiana
LA: School voucher expansion expected to be part of Gov’s agenda
NE: Child welfare will dominate Neb. legislature
NY: Lewis County mental health privatization to move ahead
FL: GOP puts bulls-eye on education

News summaries
IL: Chicago, ugly urban parable of privatization

..Leasing plans in New Haven and Los Angeles are now gathering dust. Behind these decisions are surely no small amount of political calculus. But there’s also, quite likely, a healthy dose of economic skepticism, driven by turns to the Chicago example. When a parking meter lease was shoved upon the bankrupt Harrisbug, David Johnson, an analyst with ACM Partners in Chicago, told the Huffington Post:
“There’s a reason that there’s been so much enthusiasm in the finance community for privatization deals. You are dealing with a less savvy partner,” Johnson said. “The bigger sucker is always the government.” And that’s how a Morgan Stanley can rope in billions more than a city expects. That line supports the theory that local governments are largely financial inept—with the Keystone capital perhaps the sad poster child. (For her recent proposal of the city’s bruised budget, Harrisburg’s Mayor reportedly removed a parking meter lease.) There’s also a convincing case, made at length by Ellen Dannin, a legal scholar and privatization bird-dog, that asset sales inherently shift risk to the public sector and bury oversight. Much of what’s sour about Daley’s parking deal was its false nod to competitiveness—ostensibly led by an open bidding process, it was cut behind doors over a weekend. Forbes

IN:A gathering storm over ‘right to work’ in Indiana
Nearly a year after legislatures in Wisconsin and several other Republican-dominated states curbed the power of public sector unions, lawmakers are now turning their sights toward private sector unions, setting up what is sure to be another political storm. The thunderclouds are gathering first here in Indiana. The leaders of the Republican-controlled Legislature say that when the legislative session opens on Wednesday, their No. 1 priority will be to push through a business-friendly piece of legislation known as a right-to-work law. If Indiana enacts such a law — and its sponsors say they have the votes — it will give new momentum to those who have previously pushed such legislation in Maine, Michigan, Missouri and other states. New Hampshire’s Republican-controlled Legislature was the last to pass a right-to-work bill in 2011, but it narrowly failed to muster the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto by the Democratic governor; an Indiana law would re-energize that effort. The New York Times

LA: School voucher expansion expected to be part of Gov’s agenda
Gov. Bobby Jindal and his allies on education reform are considering an unprecedented, statewide expansion of private school vouchers and steps to more closely link teachers’ job security with performance, according to two officials who have consulted with the governor’s office on proposals for this year’s session at the Louisiana Legislature. The Times-Picayune

NE: Child welfare will dominate Neb. legislature
The debate will include whether to pull back on the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services’ controversial experiment in privatizing child welfare..Starting in November 2009, the state turned over to private contractors the bulk of duties for ensuring the safety and well-being of abused and neglected children in the state…A legislative committee concluded last month that the contracts had been “ill-advised” from the beginning and had produced “neither the outcomes nor the cost savings for which the state contracted.”..The recommendation to return management of child welfare cases to the state appears to have strong initial appeal among senators. Sen. Tom Hansen of North Platte argued that state workers should take back case management duties because the care of children in the system is a state responsibility. “These are wards of the state, not wards of a corporation,” he said. Lexington Clipper Herald

NY: Lewis County mental health privatization to move ahead
Lewis County legislators on Tuesday gave the proverbial green light for privatization of county mental health services to proceed.  Lawmakers voted 10-0 to endorse the move of most county mental health services to Transitional Living Services of Northern New York, Watertown, with three programs to be overseen by the Northern Regional Center for Independent Living…While the NRCIL transfer is to take place right away, the Transitional Living portion, which requires an extensive application process through the state Office of Mental Health Services, is expected to take at least four to six months. Watertown Daily Times.

FL: GOP puts bulls-eye on education
Later this month, Florida Republicans will have an opportunity to register their feelings on federal education policy — and whether there should even be a national policy…At least four major Republican contenders — Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry and Ron Paul — have called for abolition of the DOE. Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Jon Huntsman have put more emphasis on vouchers, emphasizing math and science curriculum, revamping union rules to make it easier to fire incompetent teachers and always driving decision-making authority as far down as possible. That’s in tune with much of what Florida has done. Last year’s Legislature approved a law tying teacher salaries to performance and eliminating tenure for new hires. Both Gov. Rick Scott and the legislative leadership are emphasizing STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — in this year’s session, nudging schools away from anything that doesn’t show quick job-finding results. Florida Today