News
PA: Corbett eyes lottery privatization
On few issues are the battle lines being more sharply drawn here than the privatization of the Pennsylvania Lottery. The issue after all involves the future of a program that has provided $22 billion in revenue during the past 40 years. The Corbett administration recently took a major step on the way to privatization by seeking bids from private firms interested in managing the lottery. Democratic lawmakers are vociferous in their opposition to the idea. Citizens Voice
DE: Talk of privatizing Wilmington’s port resurfaces
Discussions of privatizing part or all of the state-owned Port of Wilmington are resurfacing after months of little movement. Two potential investors have made the reported short list as possible partners. A solicitation for the port pegged Wilmington’s future potential for cargo as high as 1.7 million containers each year by 2040. Union workers are concerned about the language of any deal. They want any deal to ensure protections for their jobs and pensions. Delawareonline.com
FL: Editorial: Another sneaky move with prisons
It shouldn’t have happened this way. But a handful of people in Tallahassee are determined to privatize Florida’s prisons, including health care services, no matter that they can’t get enough votes to pass these proposals in the Florida Legislature. Sun-Sentinel
FL: Fla. judge skeptical about prison privatization
A skeptical judge on Monday raised questions about whether it was legal for the state to move ahead with a plan to privatize nearly 3,000 health care jobs in Florida’s prisons. Circuit Judge John Cooper spent more than two hours Monday hearing a lawsuit from three public employee unions that challenged a move by the state’s prison agency to have private companies take over inmate health care. Cooper did not rule, saying he needed more information before he can decide whether an obscure legislative panel had the authority to sign off on the privatization proposal in September. Local 10
NY: Onondaga County must not privatize Van Duyn
If you want another good reason as to why, let me tell the tragic story of how nursing home privatization recently failed the citizens of Delaware County. Syracuse Post Standard
State by State, the Case Against Prisons Becomes Promising
Contrary to the cost reduction promises of the private prison industry, private prisons in Arizona are actually losing money – $3.5 million a year – by incarcerating their prisoners in private prisons, a new report shows. Not only are they losing money, they are contractually bound to keep prison occupancy levels at 100 percent. However, many former privatization supporters are moving away from this position in favor of focusing efforts towards a more straight forward reduction of prison population. The conservative network of state legislators, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), is a leader in this effort. Once a strong advocate of prison privatization and mandatory minimums, ALEC has abandoned their work on privatization and are now exclusively focusing efforts on pushing out model bills designed to reform sentencing laws. Independent Voter Network