Senate plan gets tough on privatization
Source: By Bill Cotterell, Tallahassee Democrat (FL), April 21, 2006
State agencies would have to justify future privatization plans with a "detailed business case" and send some hard-nosed negotiators to deal with corporate bargaining teams, under a bill poised for passage today in the Florida Senate. Sen. Nancy Argenziano, R-Dunnellon, said Thursday her bill (SB 2518) was prompted by the Convergys and Staubach contracts, in which the state privatized personnel services and brought in an outside firm to negotiate office leases. Chronic problems with Convergys, which operates the "People First" human-resources system, has been the subject of extensive hearings this year by Argenziano's Senate Governmental Oversight and Productivity Committee. ..... The bill creates a "council on efficient government," which will review large "outsourcing" initiatives prior to contracting. It also requires extensive training for employees in charge of negotiating contracts, so they aren't out-staffed by the lawyers, accountants and technical expertise fielded by giant companies seeking state contracts.