AFSCME Privatization Update

Source: By Chloe Gotsis, Tewksbury Advocate (MA), Wed May 28, 2008

........ Three months after the town's Financial Planning Task Force entrusted the Tewksbury Public Library's Board of Trustees to investigate the benefits of privatizing the town's public library, the trustees concluded they cannot support a decision to privatize the library.

...... The board reported if the town privatized its library, it would be burdened by large unemployment costs, since most libraries around the country that are privatized by the country's primary outsourcer, Library Systems and Service (LSSI), initially layoff all their employees.

Currently, the Germantown, Md.-based LSSI manages 65 privatized libraries in Oregon, Texas, Tennessee and California. The large size of LSSI and its rank as one of the sole outsourcing companies raised some eyebrows among the library trustees, who said they feared this large monopoly put both the town and the trustees in a poor bargaining position.

Posted by Info Center at 2:39 PM in Library | Permalink
Tags: Massachusetts

Source: By Jay Pateakos, Herald News (MA), May 29, 2008 @ 09:43 PM

With the school department slated to privatize the custodial workforce at all the schools by July 1, the union representing the 16 workers set to lose their jobs said other schools across the state have tried this path and failed. The union said the Swansea school system will likely be no different.

...... The custodial union, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 93, which represents 35,000 state and municipal workers in the state, rejected the school department's final contract proposal that would have seen a 12 percent pay raise over a three-year period and an increase in shift differentials because the department sought the power in determining when custodians can return to work after an injury.

Posted by Info Center at 2:36 PM in Custodial | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Massachusetts

Source: By Stephen Barr, Washington Post, Friday, May 30, 2008

The Office of Personnel Management sent a "stop work" letter to the contractor developing a software system to calculate retirement benefits for federal employees, officials said yesterday.

The contractor, Hewitt Associates, was given 10 days to propose a remedy for flaws and defects uncovered by the OPM during tests of the benefits calculator. Only five of 61 functions worked as intended during recent testing.

Posted by Info Center at 2:33 PM in Federal | Information Technology | Permalink

Source: By DANIEL WALSH, Press of Atlantic City (NJ), Friday, May 30, 2008

When a halfway house resident was arrested in Bridgeton two weeks ago for soliciting prostitution, some viewed it simply as odd news. State corrections officers viewed it as a sign of a larger problem, that of privatizing prisons, and Thursday they unleashed a radio campaign hammering on just that

....... The ad focuses on what union leaders describe as a gradual but clear move toward the privatization of prisons. It targets New Jersey's privately run halfway houses, which saw their number of escapes nearly double from 2006 to 2007, according to the state Department of Corrections, but it also criticizes state plans for a privately run Trenton facility to house violent sex offenders and the creation of residential assessment centers to evaluate parole offenders rather than simply sending them back to prison.

Posted by Info Center at 2:32 PM in Corrections | Permalink
Tags: New Jersey

Source: by Courtney Gross, Gotham Gazette (NY), June 2008

Six months ago, Prison Health Services -- the private, for profit company that manages health care in 10 of the city's 11 jails -- got a raise. The Tennessee-based corporation, which has a virtual monopoly on health care in prisons nationwide, saw its payments increase by more than 10 percent -- a figure that has been adjusted for inflation -- since its previous agreement with the city in 2005. That raise came despite the company's failure to meet at least 15 percent of its performance standards set by the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene between 2006 and 2008.

On several occasions, the company has not met one in four of its performance indicators, which range from HIV care to intake history and physical exams, according to quarterly review reports from the department.

Posted by Info Center at 2:27 PM in Corrections Health | Permalink
Tags: New York

Source: The Capital Times (WI), 5/28/2008 7:14 pm

Workers at the Aramark Laundry have voted unanimously to authorize a strike against the company over what the union contends are unfair labor practices.

The dispute between the company and its workers has heated up in recent weeks as the company called police to have union representatives tossed from the company, which police declined to do.

Posted by Info Center at 1:28 PM in | Permalink
Tags: Wisconsin

Source: ICMA website, May 2008

Results of a recent survey "Profile of Local Government Service Delivery Choices" conducted by ICMA in the summer and fall of 2007, show that the primary reason local governments consider private service delivery is to decrease costs; yet, 22 percent of local governments reported that they had brought services back in-house during the past five years. The two top reasons given are unsatisfactory service quality (61 percent) and insufficient cost savings (52 percent).

Posted by Info Center at 1:22 PM in Publicization | Permalink

Source: By Carl Chancellor, Beacon Journal (OH), Thursday, May 29, 2008

After the sewers, what comes next? That was the question, as well as the main concern of the more than 150 people attending Wednesday's community meeting of the Citizens to Save Our Sewers and Water grass-roots organization.

..... ''It's the domino-effect. Once they [private corporations] get a foot in the door nothing is safe,'' said Stevan Pickard of the AFSCME Ohio Council 8.

Posted by Info Center at 1:18 PM in Water & Sewer | Permalink
Tags: Ohio

Source: By Ellen Dannin and Phineas Baxandall, Ellen Dannin teaches law at the Penn State Dickinson School of Law. Phineas Baxandall is senior analyst for tax and budget policy at the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, Philadelphia Inquirer (PA),
Tue, May. 27, 2008

The prospect of $12.8 billion to invest in public infrastructure and promises that investing the payout would yield more than $1 billion every year for the life of the 75-year Pennsylvania Turnpike deal may sound like a godsend to a commonwealth filled with crumbling roads and bridges.

Aside from some grumbling about increased tolls for drivers, many regard these potential proceeds like free cash. The truth is the money would have huge hidden costs far greater than the projected toll increases. These costs would leave Pennsylvania poorer rather than better off.

Posted by Info Center at 1:16 PM in Asset Sale/Lease | Transportation | Permalink
Tags: Pennslyvania

Source: By Jeremy Redmon, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (GA), 05/27/08

A year and a half after they split from Fulton County hoping to deliver better services to taxpayers, the cities of Milton and Johns Creek have not yet tracked how well they're reaching that goal. As Sandy Springs did before them, Milton and Johns Creek took a new approach and hired a private company to manage nearly all their government services, except their police and fire departments.

Milton and Johns Creek officials, as well as many city residents and businessmen interviewed, say they generally are happy with the performance of Englewood, Colo.-based CH2M Hill Inc.

But city leaders say they have been too busy with other priorities to set benchmarks by which they can precisely measure the company's performance, a responsibility called for in their multimillion-dollar contracts.

Posted by Info Center at 1:15 PM in Contract Cities | Permalink
Tags: Georgia

Source: by Linda Angelo, The Flint Journal (MI), Saturday May 24, 2008

........The Sherman Middle School cook -- who has whipped up thousands of cheeseburgers and chicken patties over the past 11 years -- could lose her union job to a private company. It's something that will be decided next month in Holly, which like many districts is ramping up privatizing jobs during tough financial times.

...... Statewide, more than 40 percent of school districts last year privatized at least one of three major services: custodial, food service and transportation, according to Michael LaFaive, fiscal policy director at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Lansing.

....... Some of those who lose their jobs to privatization get hired by the private company but their employment doesn't last long, contended Larry Roehrig, secretary treasurer Michigan AFSCME Council 25.

Posted by Info Center at 1:12 PM in Food Services | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: By SARAH CHACKO, Advocate (LA), May 23, 2008

Legislation that would have allowed the state to privatize a facility for certain mental health patients failed to get approval from a House committee Thursday.

Posted by Info Center at 1:09 PM in Laws/Legislation | Mental Health | Permalink
Tags: Louisiana

Source: BY ZACHARY GORCHOW, Detroit FREE PRESS (MI), May 23, 2008

Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's proposal to sell the city's half of the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel to satisfy a financial hole suffered a possibly fatal setback Thursday when the City Council voted to omit the deal from the upcoming budget.

...... Deputy Mayor Anthony Adams said earlier this month that he would recommend layoffs to find the $65 million.

Posted by Info Center at 1:07 PM in Asset Sale/Lease | Public Works | Transportation | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: By Tanika White and Doug Donovan, Baltimore Sun (MD), May 22, 2008

Maryland health officials are investigating the recent death of a mentally ill man who was residing in an unlicensed assisted living facility in Northeast Baltimore, one of "dozens" suspected of operating around the state without adequate staff or training to care for residents.

........ The state oversees more than 1,300 licensed assisted living facilities, but it has difficulty identifying and shutting down unlicensed operators. In the past two years, at least 30 such homes have been fined for not having licenses, but officials say they believe many more exist.

....... State health officials said there are not enough licensed assisted living facilities that will take low-income people with significant health problems. As a result, an underground cottage industry has sprung up in Maryland and other states, according to experts.

Posted by Info Center at 1:02 PM in Mental Health | Permalink
Tags: Maryland

Source: By Dan Keating, Washington Post (DC), Thursday, May 22, 2008

A consultant for the District Office of Tax and Revenue has been paid more than $2 million in improper charges, including airfare to Puerto Rico, cable television bills, $3,000 apartment rentals and management retreats, Auditor Deborah K. Nichols said yesterday.

The auditor also said that hourly labor rates were too high, annual increases were too large, millions of dollars worth of additional work was tacked on and managers under Chief Financial Officer Natwar M. Gandhi failed to properly oversee consultant Accenture's work for the tax office.

Accenture has been paid about $135 million since 1998 to create the Integrated Tax System and run the computers, including ongoing fees of $5 million per year.

Posted by Info Center at 11:47 AM in Horror Stories | Information Technology | Tax Collection | Permalink
Tags: District of Columbia

Source: Palm Beach Post Editorial, Monday, May 19, 2008

After nearly $1 million in fines for contract violations, among them having too little food and too few staff, why is Florida still contracting with Philadelphia-based Aramark Correctional Services to feed state prisoners?

The state pays Aramark $71 million per year to feed most of the state's 92,000 inmates. But since 2001, Aramark has been fined more than $864,000 - nearly $250,000 this year. When is enough enough?

..... The audit also found that Aramark repeatedly changed the menu, substituting less expensive meats (ground turkey instead of beef, for example; "turkey ends and pieces" instead of turkey breasts), but didn't pass on the savings to the state. In other words, Aramark was getting paid more for less.

Posted by Info Center at 11:43 AM in Corrections | Food Services | Permalink
Tags: Florida

From the National Foundation for American Policy -

A complication of links including reports, a Summary List of States With Proposed Outsourcing Restrictions, Executive Orders and Directives from Governors on Outsourcing and full-text of state legislation.

Posted by Info Center at 10:49 AM in Offshore | Websites/databases | Permalink

Source: Jennifer Misthal, News Press (FL), May 22, 2008

Developers and builders will have an easier time working in Bonita Springs once a private firm assumes the city's community development services.

With CH2M Hill, a Denver-based consultant, Bonita is promising a higher level of service, a shorter wait to receive permits and staff working in Bonita Springs, not Fort Myers.

After hours of debate, the Bonita Springs City Council Wednesday voted unanimously to hire CH2M Hill to handle its permitting and building inspections for $1.5 million.

Posted by Info Center at 10:32 AM in Licensing | Permalink
Tags: Florida

Source: By Aleea Hibeln, Observer & Eccentric Mirror (MI), May 22, 2008

The Northville Public Schools Board of Education is looking into outsourcing custodial, food service, and transportation jobs because of declining money from the state and flat or declining enrollment. If a decision is made to privatize, implementation would likely occur in August.

The board is scheduled to make a decision on whether to privatize by June 10. If they decide to go forward with outsourcing, 54 custodians, 49 bus drivers and 45 food service personnel will lose their jobs as early as August.

Posted by Info Center at 10:27 AM in Custodial | Food Services | School Bus | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: By Harold Gwin, Vindicator (OH), Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Noncertified city school employees are asking for some loyalty from the city school board. Concerns that the board may opt to bring in a private company to manage the district's food service program prompted representatives of American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees Local 1143 to address a school board business committee meeting Tuesday.

..... The committee has had a preliminary report from Sodexho School Services, a management company providing assistance to schools and colleges, that suggested Youngstown might be able to boost its revenues by $250,000 to $300,000 a year through increased student participation, said Michael Murphy, committee chairman.

Posted by Info Center at 10:32 AM in Food Services | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Ohio

Source: By KEN KUSMER, Associated Press (IN), 3:49 PM CDT, May 19, 2008

Problems with Indiana's landmark automation of welfare eligibility have cost some disabled residents food stamps and other benefits they need to survive, the American Civil Liberties Union alleges in a lawsuit that seeks class-action status.

..... The case was amended Friday in Marion Superior Court in Indianapolis to include members of six households, all residents of the 12-county region where FSSA inaugurated the privatized welfare system by which clients can use the Internet, call centers and fax machines to apply for and renew benefits.

Posted by Info Center at 10:31 AM in Information Technology | Laws/Legislation | Social Services | Permalink
Tags: Indiana

Source: By Betsy Yagla, New Haven Advocate, Tuesday, May 20, 2008

...... After a long and hard-fought battle, unionized school cafeteria workers succeeded in forcing New Haven public schools to put Aramark's 14-year-old food service contract out to bid. (Aramark continues to manage school maintenance.) When none of the bids were up to snuff, the schools decided to take the program in-house. Aramark's contract ends June 30. The following day, the job of running a healthy, cost-effective lunch program falls to the Board of Education.

.... Has Aramark been skimping on food to city schools since losing its lucrative contract as food service provider? Several cafeteria workers say it has, and suspect retaliation. "We're down to one entrée," says Grace Daniele, a shop steward and cook at Nathan Hale School.

....... Daniele says she used to serve three or four meal choices at lunch time. "It changed completely after they were notified they'd no longer be our management company," says Daniele.

Posted by Info Center at 10:14 AM in Food Services | Publicization | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Connecticut

Source: Muncie Star Press (IN), May 19, 2008

The state's experiment with the privatization of the welfare system is seriously flawed. The 500 people who showed up for a town hall meeting in Muncie last week is ample evidence, as are the dozens of letters and calls from desperate families to local newspapers after losing their Medicaid and food stamp benefits.

That's not to mention the local social service agencies and food banks that say they are strained by a massive increase in need.

Posted by Info Center at 10:12 AM in Information Technology | Social Services | Permalink
Tags: Indiana

Source: By Jeff Shields, Philadelphia Inquirer (PA), May 16, 2008

Water Commissioner Bernard Brunwasser says a new, privatized sludge plant in Southwest Philadelphia would reduce the human waste stored on site, require fewer diesel trucks to haul that waste, and eliminate the putrid smell that can extend more than a mile in any direction from under the Platt Bridge.

What seems like an easy sell has been anything but because, in part, it would eliminate 60 union jobs at the city's current "biosolids" plant, a nice name for the not-so-nice mess that comes out of the city's wastewater. The Nutter administration introduced legislation yesterday in City Council that would allow a private partnership, led by the country's largest biosolids contractor, to take over disposal from the city's wastewater treatment facilities.

The initiative, introduced by Mayor John F. Street in early 2006, had stalled because of opposition from District Council 33 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents workers at the current plant. Union officials could not be reached yesterday.

Posted by Info Center at 2:39 PM in Water & Sewer | Permalink
Tags: Pennslyvania

Source: By David Dagan, Central Penn Business (PA), 5/16/2008

The deal is on the table for members of the Harrisburg Parking Authority union. The private company that wants to lease the city's parking facilities yesterday mailed a letter to members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 521b. The union local has publicly opposed the deal.

The letter promised an hourly pay increase of 75 cents, a cash bonus equal to 20 percent of salary and other perks if the union agrees to remove a contract clause blocking the $215 million, 75-year lease.

Posted by Info Center at 2:37 PM in Asset Sale/Lease | Transportation | Permalink
Tags: Pennslyvania

Source: By Norb Franz, Macomb Daily (MI), Saturday, May 17, 2008

The only municipality in Macomb County that does not use private companies for rubbish pickup may soon outsource recycling and compost, but cost-conscious officials insist they're not looking to slam the lid on Warren's unionized workers.

....... And while administrators insist they're not seeking to eliminate unionized jobs, regular employees and union leaders are skeptical and worry their jobs are threatened as city administrators study various cost-saving moves. "It could be a start," warned Mark Bolick, president of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 1250, the largest city union.

Posted by Info Center at 2:31 PM in Waste Management | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: By Carol D. Leonnig, Washington Post, Sunday, May 18, 2008

The small Texas property-management company had no experience overseeing hundreds of defaulted homes across the country. It did have two former Reagan administration officials at the helm and warm relations with senior Republican appointees at the federal housing agency.

During a few weeks in 2004, the three-employee company, Harrington, Moran and Barksdale Inc. (HMBI), went from no government work to landing $71 million in contracts with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to oversee the upkeep and sale of defaulted homes. It had previously managed a handful of apartment buildings and development projects.

...... Federal investigators are still sorting through HUD contract awards to friends of Secretary Alphonso Jackson, who resigned last month amid a criminal probe. But some career staff members and agency observers say problems in the agency's contracting process run much deeper than Jackson and involve officials who promoted certain companies while rebuffing concerns about their performance and qualifications.

Posted by Info Center at 2:26 PM in Federal | Permalink

Source: By The Associated Press (AZ), May 16, 2008

A state appellate court ruled Thursday that two voucher programs for foster and disabled children attending private schools violate the Arizona Constitution by using public money to help private and religious schools.

The 3-0 ruling Thursday by a Court of Appeals panel in Tucson reverses a trial judge's ruling that upheld the programs enacted in 2006 at the urging of "school choice" supporters.

Posted by Info Center at 2:13 PM in Laws/Legislation | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Arizona

Source: By BRENDAN RILEY, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (NV), May 16, 2008

Traffic travels on U.S. 95 south from the Ann Road overpass Thursday. The Nevada Transportation Board endorsed a proposal to make lanes on part of U.S. 95 and Interstate 15 toll lanes with private financing paying for the project.
Photo by Craig L. Moran

CARSON CITY -- A proposal to allow for privatized toll lanes in Las Vegas as a way to help reduce a huge funding shortfall for Nevada highway projects was endorsed Thursday by the Nevada Transportation Board.

Gov. Jim Gibbons, the board chairman, joined with other panel members at the meeting to back the 19-mile demonstration project. Gibbons opposes higher taxes, but a spokesman said after the meeting that the voluntary freeway toll doesn't clash with his anti-tax philosophy.

The pilot project, which requires approval from the 2009 Legislature, would be on Nevada's busiest stretches of road: U.S. Highway 95 to Interstate 15, and I-15 south to Interstate 215.

Posted by Info Center at 2:11 PM in Asset Sale/Lease | Transportation | Permalink
Tags: Nevada

Source: By NICK WERNER, Star Press (IN), May 14, 2008

A Tuesday town hall meeting for area residents to vent frustration over the state's new welfare-delivery system drew a crowd of about 500. What the crowd suggested about the new system's effectiveness became a subject of debate among those who support it and those who don't.

....... Indiana began privatizing welfare delivery last fall in a pilot program that involved a dozen central and eastern Indiana counties, including Delaware County.

...... Since the transition, however, social service agencies have reported an increase in complaints from people who have lost their food stamps and Medicaid health care coverage.

Posted by Info Center at 1:40 PM in Social Services | Permalink
Tags: Indiana

Source: Elizabeth Ziegler, KCPW News, May 13, 2008

Senator Howard Stephenson says he'll continue his efforts to get government out of business. Stephenson, President of the Utah Taxpayers Association, says the "yellow pages test" is gaining support in the Legislature.

...... Utah is now recognized by the Reason Foundation as having the nation's most comprehensive state and local privatization laws. Three bills passed earlier this year require an inventory of state and local services that could be privatized. The new laws also require a process for private industry to take over some government services. Speaking on KCPW's Midday Metro Monday morning, Stephenson says this should also apply to the state-run liquor market.

Posted by Info Center at 1:38 PM in Laws/Legislation | Permalink
Tags: Utah

Source: By STEVEN GREENHOUSE, New York Times, May 14, 2008

Four City Department of Education employees were charged in a federal indictment (.pdf) on Tuesday with soliciting bribes in exchange for promising preferential treatment, including on safety inspections, to bus companies that serve thousands of special education students.

...... The indictment said the bus companies, which were not named, had paid bribes from the mid-1990s to 2007 for a variety of reasons, among them to get reduced fines for safety violations and advance notice of inspections that were supposed to be unannounced.

....... Parents of special education children have complained for years about unreliable bus service as well as abusive treatment of their children by bus drivers and matrons.

Posted by Info Center at 1:34 PM in School Bus | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: New York

Source: By Steve Peoples, Providence Journal (RI), Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Governor Carcieri has proposed spending more than $200 million on contract employees for the coming year, according to a report presented last night before a packed meeting of the House Finance Committee.

...... Union officials said the public should know more about the use of contractors, especially given the massive state budget deficit for the coming year. "I know they can't eliminate all the contract employees," said James Cenerini, a lobbyist for the largest state employees union, Council 94 of the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees. "But I think taxpayers should know how much money is being spent to pay contractors."

Posted by Info Center at 1:31 PM in Overview/General | Permalink
Tags: Rhode Island

Source: BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY, Detroit FREE PRESS (MI), May 9, 2008

The food program provided to Detroit Public Schools students could soon be served, as well as managed, by school employees.

The Detroit Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday night to allow the contract with Philadelphia-based Aramark Educational Services, LLC to expire on June 30. Aramark has managed the $44-million food-services operation since 2001.

....... The vote came after at least a year of lobbying and protests staged by union employees who argued that DPS employees could do a better and cheaper job of running the food services.

..... Aramark President Dennis Maple wrote in a May 6 letter to Calloway that DPS should stick with his company. He also offered to work under contract to help transition to in-house management by employees.

Posted by Info Center at 11:13 AM in Food Services | Publicization | Schools K-12 | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: JAN MURPHY, Of The Patriot-News (PA), Sunday, May 11, 2008

State contracts with an information technology consultant and an initiative to equip classrooms with technology are about to go under the auditor general's microscope.

..... Some current and former state employees question how one company got so much of the state's technology business and whether it had anything to do with ties to Deloitte held by four high-level officials in Gov. Ed Rendell's administration.

Posted by Info Center at 2:07 PM in Audits/Reporting | Information Technology | Permalink
Tags: Pennslyvania

Source: By JAMES RISEN, New York Times, May 4, 2008

In October 2004, the United States Army issued an urgent bulletin to commanders across Iraq, warning them of a deadly new threat to American soldiers. Because of flawed electrical work by contractors, the bulletin stated, soldiers at American bases in Iraq had received severe electrical shocks, and some had even been electrocuted.

...... American electricians who worked for KBR, the Houston-based defense contractor that is responsible for maintaining American bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, said they repeatedly warned company managers and military officials about unsafe electrical work, which was often performed by poorly trained Iraqis and Afghans paid just a few dollars a day.

Posted by Info Center at 2:02 PM in Federal | Permalink

Source: By Jessica Pupovac, In These Times, May 12, 2008

Deputies from Mexico's revolutionary Democratic Party (PrD) were protesting an initiative to privatize the state-run oil company Petroleos mexicanos (Pemex) on April 14.
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Halliburton is licking its chops at the prospect of Mexico's state-owned Petróleos Mexicanos going private.

Petróleos Mexicanos, or PEMEX, withstood a tsunami of privatizations of formerly state-owned companies in the late 1980s and '90s. But now, with pro-business President Felipe Calderón in office, the effort is being revisited -- and the Mexican left is coming out en masse to defend the 70-year-old company, a long-time source of national pride and a symbol of Mexican sovereignty.

Posted by Info Center at 1:59 PM in | Permalink
Tags: International

Source: NOW on PBS, Week of 5.9.08

Corporations are running many Americans prisons, but will they put profits before prisoners?

A grim new statistic: One in every hundred Americans is now locked behind bars. As the prison population grows faster than the government can build prisons, private companies see an opportunity for profit.

This week, NOW on PBS investigates the government's trend to outsource prisons and prisoners to the private sector. Critics accuse private prisons of standing in the way of sentencing reform and sacrificing public safety to maximize profits.

Posted by Info Center at 1:56 PM in Corrections | Permalink

Source: South Florida Business Journal, Friday, May 9, 2008 - 9:11 AM EDT

An audit claims Wackenhut Corp. billed Miami-Dade Transit about $6.02 million over three years for work its security officers did not do.

Wackenhut said it disagreed with the methodology used by the auditor.

...... Wackenhut is currently responsible for three contracts with the county -- the care and custody of juvenile detainees at the Juvenile Assessment Center, security services for Miami-Dade Transit and security services for a Public Works Special Taxing District.

Miami Dade Audit & Management Services

Posted by Info Center at 3:27 PM in Corrections | Horror Stories | Public Safety | Permalink
Tags: Florida

Source: Capital 9 News (NY), 05/09/2008 06:22 AM

A union representing state employees said New York is wasting taxpayer dollars. The Public Employees Federation said the state is hiring private consultants when it should be using state workers.

Using data from the state Comptroller's Office, PEF did a study which said New York State could save $700 million if it stopped hiring consultants and used state workers to do the same jobs.

Posted by Info Center at 1:35 PM in Audits/Reporting | Overview/General | Permalink
Tags: New York

Source: By Mark Melady TELEGRAM & GAZETTE (MA), Thursday, May 8, 2008

The Research Bureau has again urged the city to unload some of its properties, including the airport, the DCU Center, Union Station and the Senior Center, and recommended other cost-saving measures such as outsourcing custodial services, ending paid police details at construction sites, further reducing employee health insurance costs, and limiting police and fire injured-on-duty compensation.

Posted by Info Center at 1:33 PM in Asset Sale/Lease | Custodial | Transportation | Permalink
Tags: Massachusetts

Source: by Cecilia Chan, The Arizona Republic, May. 7, 2008 10:50 AM

With the cost to put people in county jails on the increase each year, Peoria is taking a look at the private sector to do the job. Maricopa County is predicting an 8 percent increase in the jail incarceration fee in fiscal year 2009 for Peoria, a $108,000 jump to $383,000. Also, new DUI laws have increased the number of booking days for first- and second-offenders.

Posted by Info Center at 1:59 PM in Corrections | Permalink
Tags: Arizona

Source: JOHN BURGESON, Connecticut Post, 05/06/2008 11:05:15 PM EDT

Mayor Bill Finch, excoriated in recent days over his proposed budget that would deeply cut the school health clinics, said Tuesday the clinics could remain open if they were privatized. Finch, at a news conference in City Hall Annex, announced the formation of a seven-member committee that will make recommendations for turning over operation of the 10 school clinics to private health care providers.

....... Finch was referring to the reimbursement the city gets from Medicaid for services provided at the clinics. Other health care providers can bill Medicaid at a higher rate than the city if they're federally qualified, officials say.

Posted by Info Center at 1:55 PM in Health | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Connecticut

Source: Daniel Hall, The Public Manager (subscription req.), Spring 2008

Contracting professionals must ensure that the federal government receives the best value for the taxpayer dollar while following acquisition regulations during procurement and contract management. Without a large influx of new workers, federal government contract processes could be severely impaired as the number and complexity of procurements increase. From 1991 to 2005, the number of contracting officers declined from thirty-seven thousand to twenty-eight thousand while procurement spending increased from $150 billion to $350 billion.

The large number soon eligible to retire and the marked increase in those less experienced give the field a lopsided demographic. Those in the middle of their career are woefully few. Young professionals, therefore, have an opportunity to replace those who are retiring and become leaders in the contracting field. To do so, they must quickly garner an institutional education, learning from others in the field to avoid the gaps in knowledge that will cost the taxpayer.

To inform young contracting professionals, this article reflects on the legal regimen of the procurement of food and beverages, with emphasis on conferences. It also discusses the state of the meeting industry and how this can influence rates, as well as negotiation techniques to ensure fair and reasonable pricing.

Posted by Info Center at 3:26 PM in Federal | Food Services | Permalink

Source: By Bruce Falconer, Mother Jones, May 2, 2008

Theft, hookers, melting down Iraqi gold to make cowboy spurs--all in a day's work for private military contractors in Iraq?

Posted by Info Center at 10:42 AM in Federal | Permalink

Source: White House news release, May 2, 2008

Competitive sourcing is producing significant savings for federal agencies, according to a report released today by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

The report shows that public-private competitions completed in FY 2007 are expected to yield almost $400 million in savings over the next five years. For the fourth year in a row, agencies reported an average return of over $25,000, or 25 percent, for each position studied.

Posted by Info Center at 10:38 AM in Federal | Permalink

Source: Associated Press, May 6, 2008

A defense contractor accused of overcharging the U.S. government for radar components pleaded guilty Monday to obstruction and will pay $9.5 million in fines, federal authorities said. (.pdf)

Herley Industries, based in Lancaster County, Pa., admitted to two counts of obstructing audits of bids to supply components for Navy and Air Force radar systems. Its former chairman Lee N. Blatt, 80, pleaded guilty to failing to create and maintain tax records; he was sentenced to a year's probation, community service and a $25,000 fine.

Posted by Info Center at 10:25 AM in Federal | Horror Stories | Permalink

Source: Business First of Buffalo, Monday, May 5, 2008 - 1:02 PM EDT

A list of repeated and serious violations of federal health and safety standards has resulted in fines and penalties adding up to $77,125 against Sodexho Inc.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration disclosed the allegations Monday, citing the Buffalo company following inspections earlier this year. The inspections of a facility at 60 Grider St. were prompted by employee complaints, OSHA said.

..... Sodexho, which operates a laundry service at the site, has 15 days to contest the charges.

Posted by Info Center at 3:20 PM in | Permalink
Tags: New York

Source: Associated Press (DC), May 6, 2008 - 8:46am

The D.C. finance office will scrap a $120 million computerized tax system that was strongly criticized by auditors.

According to a report obtained by The (Washington) Examiner, the automated system routinely fails and forces workers to create duplicate reports by hand. The report says the system has left the city open to corruption and cost millions of dollars in uncollected revenue.

A spokesman for Accenture says auditors hired by the city did not understand the high-tech system, which led them to make critical errors.

Posted by Info Center at 3:15 PM in Horror Stories | Information Technology | Tax Collection | Permalink
Tags: District of Columbia

Source: By Eric Veronikis, Central Penn Business Journal (PA), 5/5/2008

Harrisburg Mayor Stephen R. Reed this afternoon revealed a plan to lease 11 Harrisburg Parking Authority garages, its parking lots and approximately 900 metered parking spaces in the city to a private company, which would pay the authority a one-time up front sum of $215 million.

..... The plan hinges on City Council's approval and negotiations with AFSCME local 521 B, the union which represents authority parking garage employees. The new operator would employ existing garage employees at the same rate and might add more workers, Reed said.

...... HPP would sign a 75-year lease under the proposal. The authority would still own and operate parking on City Island, Reed said. It would own the garages HPP would operate under the lease. The authority could still develop new parking garages, Reed said. HPP is owned by New York-based North American Strategic Infrastructure Partners and Connecticut-based LAZ Parking.

....... State law requires leases of 30 years or more to be subjected to real estate transfer taxes, Reed said. This deal would deliver about $1.1 million in transfer taxes to the city and the Harrisburg School District, separately, he said.

Posted by Info Center at 3:12 PM in Asset Sale/Lease | Transportation | Permalink
Tags: Pennslyvania

Source: Jason Embry, AMERICAN-STATESMAN, Tuesday, May 06, 2008

A move in Congress to limit the role of private firms in doling out food stamps is dead for now, allowing Texas to move forward with its privatization plans.

U.S. House and Senate negotiators voted late last week against including a privatization ban in a $300 billion farm bill that lawmakers hope to finish this week. The ban would have prevented states from allowing employees of private companies to interact with people who are applying for food stamps or to decide someone's eligibility.

...... Last year, Texas canceled what was originally a five-year, $899 million contract with Accenture LLP to run call centers enrolling people in services. But the state did not altogether abandon its plan for private call centers, which state officials say can save money and give Texans more ways to apply for services, instead of just in person.

Posted by Info Center at 3:09 PM in Federal | Laws/Legislation | Social Services | Permalink
Tags: Texas

Source: BY RUMMANA HUSSAIN, Chicago Sun Times (IL), April 30, 2008

Cathy and Richard Bedard worried that something was wrong on the bus that took two of their three special-needs children to school. So the Berwyn couple slipped a tape recorder in their 13-year-old daughter Tiffany's backpack to investigate. They couldn't believe their ears when they pushed play. Cathy Bedard threw up.

"F - - - ing little monster," a man groused at 17-year-old Rick, who has Down syndrome. There were also jokes about tying kids to the roof of the bus, threats of breaking a child's finger and chuckling when a disabled student was escorted to another seat in order to "irritate" a classmate.

...... The driver and a bus aide, Eugene Church, were suspended from driving students in the Morton School District 201, which hired First Student Inc. to transport eight disabled children to a special-needs school in Chicago.

But the district learned that the two men were allowed to work elsewhere following a six-week suspension after the Jan. 17 recording surfaced, so the district is reviewing its $1.5 million annual contract with First Student and will try to bid the contract out by the end of the school year, district spokesman Dan Proft said.

Posted by Info Center at 2:02 PM in Horror Stories | School Bus | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Illinois

Source: Fox 6 (CA), 5/03 12:27 am

Waste collection, street sweeping and road maintenance are among 11 municipal services San Diego will consider outsourcing to private businesses in an effort to save money, Mayor Jerry Sanders announced Friday (.pdf).

Privatizing the 11 services would cut 291 municipal jobs and save the city $63.1 million in expenses, according to city officials. But union officials representing city employees questioned the timing of the announcement, which came as contract negotiations between the Mayor's Office and the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Local 127 have stalled.

...... "We are ready and willing to compete," AFSCME Local 127 President Joan Raymond said following the mayor's announcement. "We are not afraid of competition as long as the process is fair."

Posted by Info Center at 1:58 PM in Street Maintenance | Waste Management | Permalink
Tags: California

Source: By Christopher Behnan, DAILY PRESS & ARGUS, May 5, 2008

Talks of privatizing Pinckney Community Schools' Buildings and Grounds Department -- including its 27 custodians -- were tabled Thursday after the department's union made headway at the bargaining table the day before.

The board was prepared to authorize negotiations with Aramark to privatize the department, but tabled the issue at Thursday's regular meeting in order to continue hammering out a deal to keep the employees district employees.

Posted by Info Center at 11:11 AM in Maintenance | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: By DEBORAH CIRCELLI, News Journal (FL), May 03, 2008

DAYTONA BEACH -- The county jail is not physically equipped to deal with the ever-increasing number of inmates with mental illnesses and changes are needed, Volusia County Manager Jim Dineen and County Corrections Director Marilyn Chandler Ford said Friday.

But Dineen said making improvements is "not a quick fix." He's leaning toward a recommendation that the County Council extend for a year its jail health care contract with Prison Health Services. The contract expires Sept. 30.

...... Prison Health Services faces lawsuits locally and nationally by inmates claiming they didn't receive proper medications and treatment. The current psychiatrist, Dr. David Hager, is leaving this month to take a job out of state.

Posted by Info Center at 11:09 AM in Corrections Health | Permalink
Tags: Florida

Source: Jennifer Mrozowski, The Detroit News, Saturday, May 3, 2008

The Detroit Public Schools board on Thursday will consider a recommendation to boot the private company that has run its food services operation since 2001, a move being championed by some parents and cafeteria workers who have criticized the Philadelphia-based firm.

A school board subcommittee voted 3-0 on Thursday to recommend giving Aramark Educational Services LLC a 60-day termination notice as of July 1, said school board President Carla Scott.

......... Criticism of the $40 million food services operation has ramped up in recent months, with some union groups and parents holding rallies at the district's headquarters calling for termination of the contract. A union group earlier this year released a study claiming that Aramark mismanaged the district's cafeterias and kept more than $1 million in savings that should have been returned to the system.

Posted by Info Center at 11:01 AM in Food Services | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: By ROBERT T. GARRETT, The Dallas Morning News (TX), Tuesday, April 22, 2008

The state, to relieve overworked eligibility screeners, will suspend for the rest of the year interviews its workers usually have to conduct with food stamp recipients every six months, officials said Monday.

...... The state has been scrambling to rebuild its eligibility-screening workforce and improve performance at four privately run call centers after the disastrous 2006 launch of a partly privatized system of social program signups.

Posted by Info Center at 3:42 PM in Social Services | Permalink
Tags: Texas

Source: By Elizabeth Benton, New Haven Register (CT), Sat, Apr 19, 2008

State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has begun a probe of beleaguered school lunch provider Aramark Corp., citing concerns about "reports of deficient food quality and service" and inappropriate handling of food rebates and discounts. In a Friday letter to Aramark General Counsel Bart Colli, Blumenthal "strongly urged" Aramark to comply with Freedom of Information Act requests submitted by local unions, and requested Aramark provide similar information to his office by April 28.

...... Aramark is fighting a Freedom of Information Act request for Aramark's financial records from the Service Employees International Union, which claims the company has run deficits in its food service programs nationwide.

Posted by Info Center at 3:39 PM in Food Services | Horror Stories | Schools K-12 | Permalink
Tags: Connecticut

Source: AFSCME Works Onlin Xtras, February 22, 2008

When it became clear it would cost taxpayers too much, plans to outsource the jobs at three state hospitals where employees are represented by AFSCME Council 62 were formally dropped last month.

AFSCME has said for years that all privatization efforts are costly to taxpayers. Two years ago, when Council 62 members first learned of the plans to privatize state hospitals in Richmond, Evansville and Madison, the direct care employees held rallies, put up signs and drummed up community support to defeat the proposal.

Posted by Info Center at 2:13 PM in Health | Mental Health | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Indiana

Source: By Christopher Lee, Washington Post, Friday, April 25, 2008

........ The public-private face-off at West Point illustrates just what Bush envisioned when he proposed the "competitive sourcing" initiative in 2001 as part of his management agenda. It turned on a simple idea: Force federal employees to compete for their jobs against private contractors and costs will decrease, even if the work ultimately stays in-house. But as Bush's presidency winds down, the program's critics say it has had disappointing results and shaken morale among the federal government's 1.8 million civil servants. Private contractors have grown increasingly reluctant to participate in the competitions, which federal employees have won 83 percent of the time.

............. "The competitive sourcing initiative did little to improve management, produced a ton of worthless paper, demoralized thousands of workers and cost a bundle, all to prove that federal employees are pretty good after all," said Paul C. Light, a professor of government at New York University's Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.

Posted by Info Center at 11:52 AM in Federal |