Headlines
IL: Meter leasing metrics may give aldermen pause
MI: Court sides with schools in fight over privatizing security
OH: Lottery better if partially private, auditor says
UT: Privatizing parks - editorial
WI: School selling naming rights
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News summaries
IL: Meter leasing metrics may give aldermen pause
As Mayor Richard Daley looks to narrow the gaping hole in next year's
city budget by hiring companies to take over government operations, his
last major foray into privatization serves as a cautionary tale. The
city's 75-year parking meter lease led to soaring rates and initial
troubles with jammed, broken and error-prone meters that angered many
drivers. The Daley administration went on to spend most of the one-time
$1.15 billion payment in just two years. Now the city faces a record
$655 million shortfall, and the mayor is ruling out a pre-election tax
hike. So Daley is shopping potential deals to private firms to take
over recycling, run the signature Taste of Chicago festival and fix
city vehicles. "I think anyone who voted for (the meter lease) is going to
have a hard time defending themselves, so they are going to look
hard at these privatization schemes to see if it's another boondoggle," said Ald.
Scott Waguespack, 32nd, one of only five aldermen to vote against the
lease in late 2008. Critics of the parking lease said records recently
obtained by the Tribune offer additional proof that the city would have
made far more money over time if it had kept the meters, gradually
raised prices and upgraded parking fee collection equipment on its own.
Chicago Tribune
MI: Court sides with schools in fight over privatizing security
Detroit Public Schools will reinstate its contract with a private
security firm following a ruling Monday by the Michigan Court of
Appeals. The district laid off 226 security guards this summer and
hired the private firm Securitas to patrol schools. The district said
the outsourcing would save money and boost school safety. But the
Teamsters 214, which represents the guards, challenged the
privatization and a Wayne Circuit Court judge last week ordered the
guards back to work. The district immediately filed an appeal. In an
order entered Monday, the Appeals Court said "because the union failed
to establish irreparable harm or an inadequate remedy at law, the
issuance of the preliminary injunction was inappropriate and
constituted an abuse of discretion."
The Detroit News
OH: Lottery better if partially private, auditor says
The Ohio Lottery should reconstitute itself as a "quasi-public
corporation" to free itself from red tape and return more money to
public schools, the state auditor said yesterday.
The Columbus Dispatch
UT: Privatizing parks - editorial
Before putting operations and services at a single park at risk, state
officials should await the results of a parks privatization report by
the Legislative Auditor General, and study the experience of other
state and municipal governments to determine if savings can be
realized, and at what cost. In the Beehive State, the anecdotal
evidence isn’t good. In the 1980s, a private firm was hired to operate
a campground at Willard Bay State Park. State Parks Director Mary
Tullius said it cost the state millions of dollars to clean up the mess
the firm left behind. More recently, she said, a concessionaire was
contracted to manage the Jordan River OHV park. The contract was
terminated when drug and alcohol use by visitors became
routine...Another key consideration should be keeping the parks, which
hosted a combined 4.8 million visitors in 2009, safe. State park
rangers, who could be replaced if parks are privatized, are certified
law enforcement officers....But to expect the parks system to pay its
own way is unrealistic, and overlooks the role the facilities play in
attracting tourists, preserving Utah history and maintaining our
quality of life. Providing ample recreation opportunities for citizens
is a legitimate government function, and a legitimate use of taxpayer
dollars.
Salt Lake Tribune
WI: School selling naming rights
Sun Prairie's Education Foundation, working alongside the Sun Prairie
Area School District, is in the middle of offering naming rights for
various parts of the new high school....There have been no takers yet
on the school's $250,000 naming rights to the field house, but school
officials said the endowment campaign has already brought in more than
$400,000....District officials said naming rights for larger venues
like the field house are still up for grabs..School officials say the
donations will not affect school finances generated by taxpayer
dollars. It will serve as an independent fund through the Sun Prairie
Education Foundation.
WISC Madison
This state park brought to you by...
Through a corporate sponsorship agreement, Verizon is teaming up with
the Boy Scouts to restore trails and bridges in many Georgia State
Parks....The company is providing funding for tools and supplies as the
scouts perform service projects around the state. In exchange, Georgia
is recognizing Verizon Wireless in publicity materials and on the
Georgia Department of Natural Resources Web site. The partnership is
among the first steps in a broader strategy Georgia is taking to seek
corporate sponsorships in its state parks...Those could include more
programmatic sponsorships like the one with Verizon, or putting
advertisements on everything from boat ramps to park signs....[A]
growing number of states are trying out or considering corporate
sponsorship or exclusive distribution deals as a way to help close
budget gaps. State parks have traditionally resisted any type of
commercialization, says Phillip McKnelly, the association’s executive
director, and the interest in pursuing corporate partnerships is a
relatively new phenomenon driven by the severity of funding crises in
state park systems.
Stateline.org