Headlines
PA: Big money behind pro-voucher attack on lawmaker?
MI: Charter schools spend more on administration than public schools
MI: Public safety, transit cuts in Detroit budget proposal
MD: Mount Vernon Square privatization approved by Baltimore
CO: School funding: Stop giving away public assets

PA: Big money behind pro-voucher attack on lawmaker?
A flyer attacking State Rep. James Roebuck for opposing school vouchers is hitting mailboxes throughout his West Philadelphia district. “James Roebuck blocked kids from attending the schools of their choice,” is printed in big red letters above an unflattering photo of Roebuck with his mouth hanging open…”It’s obviously a really slanted piece. I don’t support vouchers. I do support school choice,” says Roebuck. “What we need to do is open up more options for students within the existing public school system so we don’t divert money out of the system to the benefit of some kids and not the many.”
Pro-voucher activists are spending big money to fund Roebuck’s challenger, Penn alum Fatimah Lorén Muhammad. The pro-voucher group Students First, according to state campaign filings, has donated $25,000 to Muhammad’s campaign. The mailer, however, was sent out by a third-party group called Public Education Excellence…Students First once again has big plans to support pro-voucher candidates across the state and has so far spent a whopping $590,682 in 2012…Hedge fund dollars notwithstanding, polls show that most Pennsylvanians oppose school vouchers. Philadelphia City Paper

MI: Charter schools spend more on administration than public schools
While charter school advocates criticize public school bureaucracies as bloated and wasteful, it turns out that charters spend more on administration and less on instruction than traditional public schools, according to a new study led by a Michigan State University scholar. The study, which examines school spending in Michigan, found that charter schools spend nearly $800 more per pupil on administration and $1,100 less on instruction, said David Arsen, MSU professor of education and lead researcher on the project. The study controls for factors such as funding levels, student enrollment and school location.
..The study doesn’t examine the reasons for the discrepancy in spending. But Arsen said it’s likely related to the fact that 84 percent of traditional public schools’ expenditures are related to personnel costs – mostly salaries and benefits – thus driving instructional costs up. When it comes to administration costs, charter schools dedicated more than $500 per pupil to general administrative services such as paying organizations to run the school. Michigan State University News

MI: Public safety, transit cuts in Detroit budget proposal
Detroit Mayor Dave Bing’s administration calls them essential core services, but the budget proposal presented to the City Council on Thursday doesn’t spare public safety, transit or lighting from cuts, possible privatization or major restructuring. That means Detroiters would be likely to feel the effects of the city’s first budget proposal under a consent agreement that requires officials to balance the budget and begin to pay off long-term debt. Wage cuts for police officers and firefighters and further reductions to the city’s struggling bus system were among the biggest cutbacks proposed Thursday in Detroit’s $1.2-billion 2012-13 budget. Detroit Free Press

MD: Mount Vernon Square privatization approved by Baltimore
As expected, the Board of Estimates signed off yesterday on an agreement to place management of Mount Vernon Place and the Washington Monument into private hands…But the privatization agreement – in particular a proposal by the group’s architect to cut down many of the park’s existing trees – remains the subject of intense criticism in some quarters. “It was a done deal at the Board [of Estimates],” Mount Vernon Place resident Arthur Kutcher told The Brew, explaining why he thinks most critics skipped the meeting. Another opponent of the Conservancy’s plan, Hugh C. Ronalds, said residents should oppose the city’s agreement not just because of the tree-cutting but because the public-private partnership sets “a bad precedent.” “There is no oversight – this private group has a free hand to do whatever they want,” said Ronalds who, together with Kutcher, has sent an op-ed on the subject to The Brew. Baltimore Brew

CO: School funding: Stop giving away public assets
When your grandpa volunteered to build the local school and your parents volunteered on school committees, they never thought that school district assets would be given away in the hundreds of millions of dollars to private, for-profit/for-gain companies, but that is exactly what is happening.  And, as a by-product of that financial transfer, control of these half-billion dollars each year is transferred from public to private interests. Public educational assets are transferred to private interests in two ways: conveying operational funds and conveying real estate interests…Few constraints on spending priorities exist except for maintaining fiscal solvency. The second transfer of taxpayer assets to private interests is that of real estate in school privatization.  When the $400 million to $600 million (Colorado State Treasurer) in existing state-backed real estate bonds for charter schools are paid-off with tax-dollars, a process taking place continuously over the years, these publicly-paid-for buildings will belong to the private-corporations of charter schools, and, when they are sold, the equity will belong to the charter schools’ owners, not to taxpayers (Colorado State Treasurer). The charter school owners can keep this half-billion dollars or disburse it as they like. When these billions of dollars leave public control and are controlled by corporations, they no longer are constrained to serve the needs of public school children.  Instead, the half-billion dollars per year in operating funds constitutes a slush fund to be spent as for-profit and for-gain private businesses determine. The Denver Post

Headlines
NJ: Rutgers new president calls for public-private ‘hybrid’
MS: Senate revives charter school proposal
LA: Prison privatization foes lose floor fight
ME: Senate gives initial approval to DHHS restructuring plan

NJ: Rutgers new president calls for public-private ‘hybrid’
..We have fundamental issues to deal with,” he said. “I think we have to restructure these large land-grant universities into public-private hybrids that can satisfy their role as flagship universities for states like New Jersey. We have to be more sustainable, less buffeted by year-to-year shifts in state funding and economic environment. We have to be more diversified, more pro-active in looking at alternative revenue streams.” Barchi outlined a few approaches he thinks could help Rutgers be proactive in defining its own destiny. They include: Partnering with major industries and small businesses in the state
Asbury Park Press

MS: Senate revives charter school proposal
The Mississippi Senate revived charter school legislation Wednesday, giving new life to a c.ornerstone of Republican leaders’ agenda.  The move sets up a showdown in the House, which has been closely divided on broadening Mississippi’s provisions allowing alternative public schools. An earlier bill was voted down in a House committee…The full House will have to vote to either send the Senate plan to conference or approve it, without possibility of floor amendments. If the bill is sent to conference, it could die, because the move would open it up to procedural challenges in the House that won’t be allowed on the direct vote to concur with the Senate…One of the key points of contention continues to be how districts rated “successful” are treated. The Senate bill gives districts rated “star” and “high-performing” a veto over charter schools in their area. Those rated successful would also get a veto, but only until July 1, 2015. Superintendents have fought the bill in part because students anywhere in the state could enroll in a charter school, even if they’re leaving the state’s best-performing district…Opponents continue to worry that traditional schools will lose money and motivated students. Charter schools would collect a per-capita share of federal, state and local funds for each student they enroll. “The ones that are left, it’s important to make sure they don’t get left further behind,” said Sen. Kelvin Butler, D-McComb. GulfLive.com

LA: Prison privatization foes lose floor fight
A move to take a closer look at the proposed sale and privatization of the Avoyelles Correctional Center fell short Wednesday. Rep. Chris Hazel, R-Ball, wanted the House to send House Bill 850 by Rep. Henry Burns, R-Haughton to the House Criminal Justice Committee, which normally deals with prison issues. HB850, though, was sent to the Appropriations Committee, which deals with financial matters, where it received approval Tuesday in a narrow 13-11 vote…However, the House rejected his request and with a 50-45 vote set the bill up for floor debate, possibly next week…Rep. Robert Johnson, D-Marksville, supported Hazel’s effort. He cautioned House members that language in the bill says it’s not just Avoyelles that’s affected because it includes any prison opened since 1989.  Johnson traced a history of escapes from private prisons and mismanagement in the past two years and quoted Corrections Secretary James Le Blanc’s committee testimony that historically, Louisiana’s experience with prison privatization “wasn’t very successful.” Monroe News Star

ME: Senate gives initial approval to DHHS restructuring plan
Many Senate Democrats protested — one even called it “a terrible bill” — but it still passed after considerable debate on Tuesday. It then went to the House late Tuesday for more debate and passed in a 75-67 vote along party lines…The proposal seeks to merge the Offices of Substance Abuse and Adult Mental Health Services and combine the Offices of Elder Services and Cognitive and Physical Disabilities Services…One sticking point for some lawmakers was privatizing some services for the state’s most mentally ill residents. The original bill called for the elimination of 33 “intensive case managers” who work with severely mentally ill and potentially dangerous residents and shifting those services to the private sector.  The committee voted to keep intensive case management services in-house for prison and county jail inmates and then contract out the rest. Bangor Daily News

Headlines
IL: How about outsourcing a university prof? – opinion
IN: Purdue struggles with reduced state funding
MI: Push to privatize DHS services
MI: Muskegon considers privatizing alternative education
VA: Richmond schools advised to cut and privatize services
ME: State historical site to be managed by person linked to Koch Bros
Privatizing prisons is not the financial answer – opinion
Petition: USDA – Keep chicken safe by rejecting privatized poultry inspection

IL: How about outsourcing a university prof? – opinion
..After decades of expansion, the U.S. university growth curve is flattening. However, “Least expensive and, more or less good enough,” is not a philosophy that builds world-class universities. It’s the hilosophy of Target and is crystallized by the hook “Expect More. Pay Less.” I like Target for retail, but try as we might to “commoditize,” education is not retail. Yet…Good teaching cannot be approached as piecework. A good teacher has to be constantly aware of how students integrate what they are learning into the rest of their lives. The cashier at Target just wants you to “Expect More. Pay Less,” and get out of the way of the next customer. The outsourcing of secondary functions may allow a university to focus more strongly on its core teaching mission. However, when universities rely on teachers that they treat as labor-for-hire, they can affect the priorities of the entire faculty. Rather than stewards, they become supplicants. They learn they must not challenge students or administrators or give any offense because they are little valued and easily replaced.Inoffensive educators stop looking to the horizon and start looking at their feet. From that posture, though, how can they prepare students to cross that next ocean or climb that next mountain? Chicago Tribune

IN: Purdue struggles with reduced state funding
…Purdue’s president has spent the past five years considering many options to counteract the decreasing amount of state funding that has been given to the University, even looking into the idea of privatization. President France Córdova, during her time in office, has been making up for a loss of almost 20 percent of state appropriations that are normally given to Purdue..Lack of state funding creates a possible option of privatization for a public university. Purdue has considered privatization in the past, but provost Tim Sands said he believes the state is already too intertwined in the University for this to be a feasible option anytime in the near future. “I don’t think that privatization is a short-term assumption about where we are headed, but we could creep in that direction,” Sands said…The changes Córdova has wrought to increase Purdue’s budget are similar to how private institutions acquire funds. Private universities are continually trying to increase the budget by innovating new programs and finding private options of revenue gain. “What we will continue to do is try to diversify our revenue so that if the state continues to decrease appropriations, because they need the money elsewhere, we will find other sources of revenue,” Sands said. “We are going to try and avoid relying on tuition and fees for that.” Purdue Exponent

MI: Push to privatize DHS services
When it comes to child welfare, Sen. Bruce Caswell, R-Hillsdale, thinks Kent county should privatize everything but child protective services, much like Wayne county…A senate budget bill calls for just that in Kent county, where the private sector is already involved. But state worker spokesperson Ray Holman worries it’s the wrong move for everyone. “Farming out the state’s responsibility is going to come back to haunt us all,” said Holman, spokesperson for UAW Local 6000. Holman also opposes a house budget bill that would move 90 youth from three state juvenille justice facilities to private centers. Rep. Dave Agema says it’d save taxpayers more than $11 million. “You’re talking about people that may have mental health issues. You could be talking about sex offenders. These individuals and these children need to be treated in these state facilities,” said Holman  Finally, a senate workgroup is studying privatizing medicaid eligibility determination. If President Obama’s Affordable Care Act is upheld, an estimated 500,000 more Michiganders will become eligible for medicaid in 2014. “Turn it over to private companies. Take the burden off our state workers,” said Caswell. But Holman says it’s not a burden, but their job – a job state workers do best. WILX

MI: Muskegon considers privatizing alternative education
Muskegon Public Schools is considering changes to its alternative education program, including having a private firm operate it as an online program…Craig students are considered to have significant special education needs.  Muskegon Chronicle

VA: Richmond schools advised to cut and privatize services
Consultants hired to help bridge the Richmond school system’s $23.8 million budget gap recommend cutting dozens of teachers, aides, custodians and other staff members, as well as privatizing transportation and facilities services. Consultants hired to help bridge the Richmond school system’s $23.8 million budget gap recommend cutting dozens of teachers, aides, custodians and other staff members, as well as privatizing transportation and facilities services, among other cost-savings measures…The group is also reviewing other areas, including employee contributions to health care premiums, eliminating health insurance contributions for retired employees and a proposed staff-reduction plan. Richmond Times Dispatch

ME: State historical site to be managed by person linked to Koch Bros
While some in Maine — including the governor — are in favor of outsourcing management of the popular Fort Knox State Historic Site, others worry that the move would be the first step down a slippery slope to privatize all state parks. “Do you really want to privatize state parks?” MaryAnne Turowski, the director of politics and legislation for the Maine State Employees Association, said Tuesday. “I think it’s a precursor to more. I think it opens the door for future considerations of privatization.”… The state will continue to own the 19th century fort that overlooks the Penobscot Narrows, but the day-to-day management of the seasonal site would be taken over by the Friends group. In exchange, they would receive 85 percent of the admission fees…But not everyone is convinced. Turowski brought up the fact that the president of the board of directors of the Friends of Fort Knox is Carol Weston, a six-term state senator who now is working as the state director for the Maine branch of Americans for Prosperity. The conservative advocacy group was founded with support from billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch, and lobbies for lower taxes and less government regulation and spending. Turowski suggested that privatizing the operations of a state historic site fits into the goals of Americans for Prosperity. “This may be a unique situation. The Friends do great work. They’ve done a lot for the park over the years,” she said. “But what’s the next step? Is it some group that’s not a ‘friend,’ but is a management corporation? Does this open the door to possibilities we’re not even thinking about right now?”..But McCabe said that the mission of Maine’s state parks isn’t exactly to operate as a business would  “Our state park system relies on some parks doing better than others,” he said. “Each of our parks is a different experience.” Bangor Daily News

Privatizing prisons is not the financial answer – opinion
…When their private prisons, a $3 billion dollar industry, doesn’t turn a profit, the owners’ close down the facility. According to a 2011 National Public Radio report, Littlefield, Texas, built a prison for GEO to run. Then Idaho and Wyoming, who were sending their prisoners to Texas, had financial problems and stopped sending them. Now the building stands idle and Littlefield’s residents have more unemployment and a tax increase. To make money in prisons, one needs to have a full house. What happens if alternative sentencing or educational and legal changes lower the crime rate? What does the owner of a prison do if authorities do not send them more bodies to lock up? Littlefield, Texas, knows. Data also suggest that private prisons tend to have fewer of the more dangerous and volatile inmates and ship in prisoners from distant areas. To save money, private prisons can pay lower wages, provide less training and hire fewer employees. Applying the private industry model of manufacturing trucks and banking doesn’t necessarily work locking up people with anti-social behaviors.  In recent years prison populations and associated costs have mushroomed. There are many ways to improve this, but privatizing prisons is not a good option. Herald-Dispatch

Petition: USDA – Keep chicken safe by rejecting privatized poultry inspection
There’s only about two weeks left to tell the USDA why privatizing poultry inspection is a big mistake! GAP’s Food Integrity Campaign has launched a petition telling Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to reject the program – known as HIMP – that hands government oversight duties to the poultry industry. Click here to sign the petition!

Headlines
Private agencies spring up, let governments sidestep scrutiny
Local governments are creating private development corporations at a rapid rate, allowing them to spend tens of millions in tax dollars outside the public view and with minimal state oversight, a Journal News investigation shows. It’s a loophole that lets governments award contracts without public bidding, sell tax-exempt bonds and take public property for resale or development. Local development corporations, or LDCs, are booming because they sidestep state restrictions on tax breaks for nonprofit groups. Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino says that is exactly why he created the Lower Hudson Valley’s newest LDC. There have been other issues. In Ramapo, taxpayers could be left with as much as $60 million in debt after town officials created their own LDC to bypass local and state laws in order to build an independent-league ballpark that had been soundly rejected by voters. Lohud.com

FL: Delray considering whether to privatize code enforcement position
In a move to save money, Delray Beach city officials will consider privatizing a code enforcement position that was recently created. At their meeting Tuesday City Commissioners are expected to weigh in the benefits of contracting with an outside firm — savings in benefits and pension plans — against the disadvantages of having a private company provide what the city considers a very personable service….The city has been talking to Calvin, Giordano & Associates, Inc., of Fort Lauderdale. The company has contracts with the cities of Weston, Pompano Beach and Pembroke Pines, providing a range of services from total privatization of code enforcement, building, administration and engineering services..Victor Kirson, who is the president of the Tierra Verde Homeowners Association, said the city is better equipped to deal with issues that are unique to Delray. “You privatize something like this and you have no control whatsoever,” Kirson said. “But the code enforcement department does need to be retrained to deal with some of these newer issues.” Sun-Sentinel

AZ: Brewer vetoes Arizona’s voucher-like program expansion
Governor Jan Brewer surprised school-choice advocates in Arizona last week when she vetoed a bill that would have expanded the state’s voucher-like Empowerment Scholarship Accounts…Opponents of the bill cheered Brewer’s decision. “We were very excited to see the governor’s action,” says Janice Palmer, director of government relations and public affairs at the Arizona School Boards Association, which has challenged the current incarnation of the ESA program in court. “We feel that those dollars should be invested in our public schools.” Brewer has previously proclaimed herself a champion of school choice, and Arizona is home to the largest percentage of charter schools of any state in the country, according to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Her veto came one day before the legislature in Louisiana passed legislation, backed by Governor Bobby Jindal, that would greatly expand its current voucher program. But Brewer’s move may have been more tactical than ideological. The governor cited concerns about increased state costs and the timing of the measure in her veto letter, but indicated that she would be willing to revisit the bill down the road. Stateline

Headlines
PA: Privatize the lottery? No sure bet private manager would be better – editorial
NH: Officials mull private prison bids
AZ: Critics cast doubt on new Ariz. prison health-care contractor
FL: Let Life Force be a lesson on risks of privatization – opinion
CA: Budget official sounds warning on LA finances

PA: Privatize the lottery? No sure bet private manager would be better – editorial
If Gov. Corbett wants to privatize operation of the state lottery system, he needs to do a better job of selling the idea…Under federal law, the state cannot sell its lottery outright, but it can contract out day-to-day management of the agency. It is not clear whether legislative approval is required. Unlike the troubled state-run liquor system, which has been ripe for privatization for years, the lottery has operated effectively for four decades and provided a windfall for state coffers. If it isn’t broken, what is there to fix? ..Pennsylvania’s lottery, the sixth-largest in the nation, is the only state lottery with proceeds dedicated solely to the needs of older residents, providing $21.5 billion for prescription drugs, transportation, long-term care, and other services. A similar proposal to privatize New York’s lottery in 2008 was dropped after backlash from senior citizens, who also benefit from some lottery proceeds there. In 2010, Illinois became the first state to contract with a private manager for its lottery in an effort to increase sales. There will undoubtedly be a protest by Pennsylvania’s 230 lottery agents and clerical workers, who would be affected by privatizing. Their concerns must be addressed. The private sector can manage some businesses cheaper and better, and the lottery may be one of them, but the state shouldn’t proceed with this gamble as if it knows it has the winning numbers. Philadelphia Inquirer

NH: Officials mull private prison bids
Still, privatizing prisons is a conversation state leaders say is worth having, even if the state ultimately decides to retain management of its prisons and inmates. “The governor thinks we need to look at different options, including various forms of public/private partnerships to ensure we can meet the future needs of our corrections system,” Gov. John Lynch’s spokesman, Colin Manning, wrote in an email. “The responses to these (requests for bids) will provide important information about the feasibility of various alternatives and how they compare to our current model.” Under orders from Lynch and the Legislature, the state Department of Corrections recently asked companies to submit bids if they were interested in building and running prisons for the state. The directive was part of last year’s budget discussions, during which the state Department of Corrections saw its 2011 budget of $106 million cut by about $4 million this year and next. Concord Monitor

AZ: Critics cast doubt on new Ariz. prison health-care contractor
Arizona’s Department of Corrections, fighting a federal lawsuit that accuses it of providing grossly inadequate health care, issued a contract to Wexford this week as part of the state Legislature’s attempts to save money by privatizing prison health care…Some prison-system observers are raising questions about whether the company can provide the savings the state hopes for while providing significant improvements in service….Although there were pre-existing problems, that audit, by the Institute for Law and Policy Planning, was more critical than Wexford admitted. It concluded that “Wexford has systematically failed to comply” with its contract and had failed to provide adequate staffing, properly licensed staff, and adequate and timely medical service. The auditors, who said they examined Wexford’s record elsewhere, wrote that “past experience in other counties reveals that jail administrators typically put up with Wexford’s cost cutting and substandard level of care until the problems become too egregious to be borne.”  AZ Central.com

FL: Let Life Force be a lesson on risks of privatization – opinion
…Businesses typically care only about the bottom line. That means profits are more important than people. That means corners may be cut, missions may be compromised and promises may be forgotten. That kind of cutthroat thinking may be tolerable in other segments of the business world, but it’s hard to defend when you’re talking about classrooms filled with children. In the case of Life Force Arts and Technology Academy in Dunedin, that translated into discontinuing bus service, cutting off student supplies and paying educators about half of what a starting teacher typically makes in Pinellas County.
Meanwhile, the for-profit management company in charge used your tax dollars to pay itself almost double what it originally told a bankruptcy court it would charge, according to a revealing series of stories done by the Times’ Drew Harwell.  Tampa Bay Times

CA: Budget official sounds warning on LA finances
Los Angeles’ top budget official says the city could go bankrupt if it doesn’t overhaul its finances with new taxes, possible layoffs and the privatization of some city services…In a sweeping report, Chief Administrative Officer Miguel Santana blamed the shortfall on stagnant revenues and rising employee costs such as payroll and pensions…Santana also wants to dole out some city services to private companies, including the management of the LA Convention Center and the zoo. Seattle Times

Headlines
AZ: Arizona’s private prisons: A bad bargain
In mid-February, the Arizona chapter of the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) released a report on the impact of private prisons in the state. Private Prisons: the Public’s Problem concluded that Arizona overpaid for private prison services between 2008 and 2010 to the tune of
$10 million, and that the services it received were shoddy at best: malfunctioning alarm systems, fences with holes in them, staff who didn’t follow basic procedures and many other failings. All told, the state’s auditor general documented 157 serious security failings across five facilities that hold in-state prisoners. (There are three additional private prisons.) At least twenty-eight riots were also reported. (The report’s authors hesitated to give exact numbers on the latter, concluding that private prison administrators tried to hide evidence of riots from the public.)
…One might think that, faced with evidence that the state isn’t getting enough bang for its buck, Arizona legislators would rethink their commitment to putting ever more prisoners into private facilities. Instead, in a move Orwellian even by the gutter standards of Arizona politics, they’ve simply tried to bar the state from collecting the evidence. On February 27 the legislature proposed a budget bill eliminating the requirement for a cost and quality review of private prison contracts. The Nation
AZ: No roads yet, but legislators want collection enforcement
..They sent the governor a measure that authorizes an enforcement mechanism for toll roads and toll lanes, even though the state has yet — if ever — to enter the toll world…Lawmakers three years ago approved a bill authorizing public-private partnerships to help build state infrastructure. Toll roads are one of the possible projects. But no one caught the fact the bill lacked a way to ensure tolls were collected. In fact, it included a provision that would have allowed refunds of tolls, particularly for truckers. The bill removes the refund provision and outlines a three-strikes process for collecting money from people who might ignore payment requests…Rep. Carl Seel, R-Phoenix, voted against the bill because he said he feared it would ensnare unwitting motorists…Toll roads still are a concept in Arizona, not concrete reality. However, ADOT is looking at building a bypass road around Nogales as well as creating a north-south connector in Pinal County. State officials are hoping for federal approval to build Interstate 11, a north-south highway across the state that would be part of a transcontinental road connecting Mexico, the U.S. and Canada. The Republic

MI: Detroit city council approves consent agreement
…Although many of the details are unclear, the agreement lets Bing and the council keep authority over the city’s finances and budget. However, they would be required to renegotiate recently ratified union concessions and share decision-making with a newly hired project manager and chief financial officer. A nine-member board would monitor the city’s fiscal restructuring. The Detroit case is the highest-profile yet involving a controversial year-old Michigan law that gives the state more power to intervene in financially troubled cities and school systems. Emergency managers have the power to toss out union contracts and strip locally elected leaders of authority. A petition drive aimed at overturning the Michigan law is trying to qualify for the November ballot.  Governing

Headlines
CA: Chancellor: Two-tiered system could privatize community colleges
NY: NYC mayor’s work on schools gets a backer
PA: House approves public-private partnership bill
PA: Protesters vent about budget cuts outside Corbett meeting
AZ: Brewer vetoes bill to expand voucher-like program for private schools
IL: Illinois Senate opposes privatization of detention centers
‎OH: Many OSU professors say they oppose plan to privatize parking

CA: Chancellor: Two-tiered system could privatize community colleges
…Starting this summer, Santa Monica College will offer new sections of popular courses for an average of $540 – four times as high as a regular section.  California Community Colleges Chancellor Jack Scott says that two-tiered system raises fears of privatization. Scott: “When you create an extra course over here and you charge this very high amt of money, then obviously, you’re making it very difficult for the student who doesn’t have the economic means to take the course to get the course.” Scott also believes it violates the state’s education code.  So he’s asking the California Attorney General’s office about that – and a lawsuit could follow … to ensure the state’s other community colleges don’t try the same thing. Capital Public Radio News

NY: NYC mayor’s work on schools gets a backer
..StudentsFirstNY, an offshoot of a national organization hatched by former Washington, D.C., schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, is designed as a political counterweight to teachers’ unions, organizers said in announcing the group Wednesday…Indeed, the United Federation of Teachers has been framing Mr. Bloomberg’s tenure in City Hall as a lost decade for education, and other groups already are trying to look beyond his term. After winning control of city schools in 2002, Mr. Bloomberg has pushed to close poor-performing schools, open charter schools and end teacher job protections…StudentsFirstNY intends to raise about $10 million a year for advertising, political contributions and other efforts, including lobbying and becoming involved in the 2013 mayoral race. Its formation was first reported by the New York Times. Micah Lasher will leave his post as the city’s Albany lobbyist to serve as the group’s executive director. Board members include Mr. Klein, who works for Wall Street Journal owner News Corp., Home Depot founder Ken Langone, Robin Hood Foundation founder Paul Tudor Jones, former Mayor Ed Koch and hedge fund manager Dan Loeb of Third Point LLC. The Wall Street Journal

PA: House approves public-private partnership bill
A bill that would authorize partnerships between the public and private sectors on transportation projects is on its way to the state Senate for its consideration.  The House voted 128 to 66 on Wednesday for the measure, touted as a way to help Pennsylvania address the yawning funding gap in its transportation funding needs. Public entities would retain ownership, but private concerns would build, operate or provide funding for the work. Backers say it would create jobs and stimulate business activity. Opponents predict it would take power away from elected officials. A similar bill is pending in the House since passing the Senate in December. WFMJ

PA: Protesters vent about budget cuts outside Corbett meeting
Roughly a dozen protesters lined up on the sidewalk in front of Orchards Restaurant when Gov. Tom Corbett came to Chambersburg Wednesday…Several concerns by protesters centered on education. Corbett’s budget proposal includes a 20 percent cut to the 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education…The proposed budget also calls for deep reductions to Penn State, Pittsburgh and Temple universities. Corbett’s budget includes a possible 5 percent cut to the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency. PHEAA funds and administers student financial aid programs in the state.
“I just want to support people,” said Karen Ramsburg, a write-in candidate for Rep. Bill Shuster’s seat in Congress. “There are so many great causes right now. I heard this was in protest of Tom Corbett. I’m definitely protesting his spending cuts to higher education and the public school system. I think his plan is to bankrupt the public and higher education system so they can privatize it. Public Opinion

AZ: Brewer vetoes bill to expand voucher-like program for private schools
..Gov Brewer said she has been a strong supporter of “educational options” for children beyond the traditional public school system. And the governor pointed out she signed legislation earlier this year expanding the ability of Arizonans to divert money they would otherwise owe in income taxes to instead provide scholarships for students to attend private and parochial schools. “But we must also ensure that government is not artificially manipulated the market through state budget or tax policy in a manner that would make an otherwise viable option so unattractive that it undermines rational choice in a competitive market,” Brewer wrote…This new proposal would have greatly expanded the program to cover any child attending a school or in a school district that has been assigned a letter grade of D or F in its achievement level by the state Department of Education. Children identified as gifted also could get a voucher, as could a child of a member of the armed forces…Brewer said, though, there needs to be a balance, with the state having “a system of different educational settings to cater to the different ways in which our students learn.” “A well-equipped system with choice, competition and innovation — these are the keys to our educational system,” the governor wrote. “Local school districts, charter schools, home school, private and parochial schools all have an important role to play.”  East Valley Tribune

IL: Illinois Senate opposes privatization of detention centers
‎A private company has plans to build an immigration detention center in Crete, in the far south suburbs of Chicago. But the Illinois Senate has approved at would ban such facilities..Fred Tsao is with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, he says any time a detention center is built by a private company, the profit motive can have bad consequences for detainees and workers. TSAO: “They’ll spend less on medical care or they’ll spend less on food, or they’ll spend less on training or wages, or they’ll spend less on heating.” Tsao supports legislation that would require all detention centers in Illinois be state-run. He says the role of detaining people should be a government function. And Illinois already bars private companies from running prisons. The Corrections Corporation of America has proposed building a detention center in Crete. WUIS

OH: Many OSU professors say they oppose plan to privatize parking
‎Opposition continues to mount against a proposal by Ohio State University to lease its parking operation for up to half a century…Many students, faculty and staff say claims that the university will reap a financial windfall are disingenuous. They said Ohio State would get no money to invest in its core academic mission unless the school received substantially more money than currently hypothesized: say $800 million instead of $400 million. Even if the deal were financially advantageous, opponents worry a move would result in significant increases in parking fees and fines. They also are philosophically opposed to the idea of a private company profiting from what had been a break-even operation for the university. And they say if anyone should make money, it should be the university, not an outside company. Columbus Dispatch

Headlines
PA: Corbett moves on changes to lottery
IL: Chicago ready to go it alone
AZ: Arizona prisons’ health care to be run by Pa. company
LA: Lawmakers debate school vouchers’ ripple effect on local budgets
IN: Indiana’s court fight with IBM nearing finish
‎SC: South Carolina considers private school tax perk
CA: Santa Monica college students protest summer fees
CA: Bus privatizing savings not as touted
FL: New public park could use private company to maintain sports fields
Protests at USDA over poultry inspection

PA: Corbett moves on changes to lottery
…Gov Corbett said he had issued a “request for qualifications” from companies seeking to manage the nation’s sixth-largest lottery. Corbett called the move an “innovative step” that could increase funding for services for the aging as record numbers of Baby Boomers join their ranks…The 40-year-old lottery generated a record $3.2 billion in ticket sales last year. All proceeds – nearly $1 billion last year – fund prescription drugs for seniors, as well as transportation, long-term care, and other services….House Democratic leader Frank Dermody (D., Allegheny) said his caucus had “serious reservations” about any proposal that gambles with critical health programs for seniors..”Why ‘fix’ something that isn’t broken, especially when privatizing it has the potential to hurt hundreds of thousands of senior citizens who rely on lottery-funded programs every day?”  Philadelphia Inquirer

IL: Chicago ready to go it alone
..Unlike his predecessor, Mayor Richard Daley, Mr. Emanuel has produced a plan that would not result in the privatization of infrastructure. Mr. Daley’s 2008 parking meter deal notoriously lost the city billions of dollars, even as it deprived the city of control over much of its street space. The Trust would allow for private profit-making without handing over full control — a reasonable compromise…Yet unlike leaders of other cities, Emanuel has not yet made the push for increases in taxes to pay for infrastructure, unlike, say, Los Angeles. In some ways, this represents a strategic move; rather than assume that voters are ready to contribute more to a not-perfect system, there has been an effort here to live within the city’s existing means. If this can be done without imposing too much austerity on public services, it will raise confidence in the local government’s ability to perform adequately.  Chicago’s decision to fund its projects in such a manner is something that most cities could likely emulate with few negative political results. They just have to be more willing to experiment with creative financing and efficiencies. Transport Politic

AZ: Arizona prisons’ health care to be run by Pa. company
Arizona’s Department of Corrections awarded a $349 million, three-year contract Tuesday to privatize health care for prison inmates that will cost the state $5 million a year more than it spent in 2011…Wexford, which has previously lost contracts for poor service and was implicated in a 2008 payoff scandal in Illinois, bid $116.3million a year, $1.1million less than the second-place bid by Corizon Inc. of Brentwood, Tenn…After a prior effort to privatize prison health care failed last year, Kavanagh, Republican chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, removed language from a bill that had required bidders to meet or better the Corrections Department’s costs.  Despite the Wexford bid exceeding state costs to provide care, Kavanagh insists that, “in the long run, reducing pension costs” by eliminating hundreds of state employees through privatization saves the state money…However, Caroline Isaacs, director of the American Friends Service Committee’s Tucson office, a prison-watchdog group, said, “This has never been about saving money; the real reason is that legislators are ideologically wedded to privatization and damn the evidence.”..The company also has had past problems meeting its contractual obligations. Clark County, Wash., declined to renew a contract with Wexford in 2009 at its county jail and juvenile-detention center after complaints that Wexford wasn’t dispensing medications to inmates in a timely fashion, leading to psychological and behavioral problems with inmates on psychotropic drugs. New Mexico terminated a statewide contract with Wexford in 2007 after an audit by that state’s legislative finance committee found shortages of physicians, dentists and other prison medical staff and noted that the company had failed to issue timely reports on the deaths of 14 inmates the previous year. Arizona Republic

LA: Lawmakers debate school vouchers’ ripple effect on local budgets
As expected, the Senate Finance Committee gave its blessing Monday to Gov. Bobby Jindal’s proposal for charter school expansion and to use the state’s public-school financing formula to pay private-school tuition for certain low-income students. But the vote did not come without considerable discussion about the measure’s effects on local school coffers…The Louisiana School Boards Association and lawmakers friendly to the group have noted that when only a handful of students leave a school, there is not a sufficient drop in expenses to make up for the lost revenue: the same number of school buses must run, the same number of teachers must be in the classroom, the same utilities must run on campus. Legislative analysts peg the average nonpublic school tuition in Louisiana at about $4,500, but that is driven by elementary schools and less-urban schools. Stan Smith, chief financial officer of Orleans Parish schools, noted that he still must manage “legacy costs” — such as retirement payments, insurance, legal settlements — from when his system, now at 17 schools, had 120 campuses. Those burdens are on the books regardless of how many students are enrolled, he said. A handful of systems also have bond debt that depends on existing MFP financing streams.  The Times-Picayune

IN: Indiana’s court fight with IBM nearing finish
‎The real reason Indiana canceled its nearly $1.4 billion contract with IBM for a troubled welfare automation system was state budget problems, a lawyer for the computer giant argued Tuesday. But the state said IBM was more concerned about profit than getting assistance to needy people. Both sides traded jabs during five hours of closing arguments before Marion Superior Court Judge David Dreyer, who is considering dueling lawsuits in the case. Gov. Mitch Daniels canceled IBM’s privatization contract in 2009 amid complaints about long wait times on calls, lost documents and improper rejections from clients and federal officials…He said IBM failed to process applications in a timely manner, which he said was its primary obligation under the 2006 contract. He said IBM didn’t devote enough resources to provide the service it had promised, and cited a company executive’s testimony that IBM couldn’t shirk its fiduciary responsibilities.” So the shareholders trump a million needy Hoosiers,” Maley said. Indianapolis Business Journal

SC: South Carolina considers private school tax perk
Parents of private and home-schooled students in South Carolina could soon have a smaller tax bill thanks to a bill that passed the House last week that would allow parents with any income to deduct up to $4,000 for private school tuition and expenses and up to $2,000 for home-schooling costs. It also would provide tax credits to businesses and individuals who donate money for private school scholarships.
If it becomes law, South Carolina would be the seventh state to offer a tax deduction or credit for private or home-school expenses, according to the National Conference of State Legislators. Eight states have tax credit pograms for donations to private school scholarship programs, according to NCSL, and several others have passed or are considering such plans this year. Stateline

CA: Santa Monica college students protest summer fees
About 100 students protesting a plan to offer high-priced courses at Santa Monica College this summer tried to storm into a meeting of the college’s Board of Trustees on Tuesday evening…The protest came on the same day that a group of students said that it will call for a campus strike if the school moves forward with plans to offer the two-tier pricing plan…They contend that the program is unfair for those who can’t afford the so-called self-funded courses and argue that the move will lead to privatizing public education. Los Angeles Times

CA: Bus privatizing savings not as touted
The North County Transit District and the private company to which it outsourced the district’s bus operations have hailed the partnership as a “new business model” that would save the district up to $10 million annually while not affecting service levels. A review of the district’s most recent financial statements by The Watchdog, however, shows that the outsourcing plan saved the district about $1 million last year. The district saved more money — $1.5 million — by cutting bus services…North County Transit in November 2009 approved the agreement with the private company, Ohio-based First Transit, to take over its maintenance and operations for its BREEZE bus line. The contract is for seven years with an option to renew it for three more years, for a total of 10 years. UT San Diego

FL: New public park could use private company to maintain sports fields
The Greater Boca Raton Beach & Park District, which is building the $12.5 million project on city property, is considering using a private company for groundskeeping at the eight-field complex. It could open in 30-60 days…”I’m sure there’s some employees worrying about what that might mean for their job,” Frisch said. Sun Sentinel

Protests at USDA over poultry inspection
Food inspectors, advocacy groups members, and others protested proposed changes to the poultry inspection process – know as HIMP – in front of the USDA yesterday. The changes would dramatically increase the rate of birds whizzing by for inspection at plants, and move toward privatizing the inspection process – essentially allowing the poultry industry to regulate itself.  GAP

Headlines
More states privatizing their infrastructure. Are they making a mistake?
Colleges shedding non-core operations
NJ: Some of Christie’s biggest bills match model legislation from ALEC
IL: Chicago not yet grounding Midway privatization possibility
PA: Gov. Corbett considers privatizing state lottery
MI: Unions would face cuts under Michigan’s new plan to save Detroit
WI: Parts of state’s anti-union law ruled unconstitutional
WI: Judge halts Milwaukee sheriff’s plan to privatize court bailiffs
NC: Privatizing pre-K hurts rural counties – editorial
FL: Can a 100% private passenger rail line turn a profit?

More states privatizing their infrastructure. Are they making a mistake?
Is this the future of transportation? Say you’re a state politician. Your local roads, bridges, and transit systems are all in dire need of upgrades. But there’s not much money left. Budgets are crunched. No one wants to raise taxes. And Congress is throttling back on transportation funding. So what’s left? Privatization, of course…But before getting too excited about the magical powers of private firms, experts warn that there are potential pitfalls to these arrangements. For one, as Robert Puentes of Brookings noted in a recent paper (pdf), these are complicated multi-decade financial arrangements. And “many states,” he notes, “lack the technical capacity and expertise to consider such deals and fully protect the public interest.” For another, the deals need to be structured wisely — Maryland’s bill, for instance, would prevent competitive bidding among private firms, which critics say could open the door to corruption and inflated contracts. Moreover, a road that’s privately owned for 75 years has the potential to conflict with other public-policy goals. For instance, as a recent GAO report (pdf) found, four of the five privately-funded toll road projects in the last 15 years included non-compete clauses that prevented the government from building nearby roads. As Tim Lee notes, “real-world privatization schemes are often explicitly protectionist.” So what if a state, say, later decides that it wants to build a rail network that competes with the private road? All sorts of complications could arise. Plus, privatization can’t work everywhere. “It’s not a universal tool,” says Jonathan Peters, a professor of finance at the College of State Island who has studied these partnerships. There are plenty of roads in states like Montana, for starters, that don’t pay for themselves and would be unappealing to private investors. There are ways around this — Madrid, for one, built its subway system by offering formula-based subsidies to private firms, which still bore the risk of a shortfall in rider demand — but it’s trickier. Few transportation experts think we can fill our multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure shortfall with private money alone. Washington Post

Colleges shedding non-core operations
Ohio State University wants to drop out of the parking business. In an era of stagnant or declining state support for higher education nationwide, the university is seeking investors who might pay hundreds of millions of dollars to lease its parking system of nearly 36,000 spaces. The university—one of the nation’s largest, with a nearly 57,000-student main campus in Columbus—is also considering privatizing a roster of other assets that could make a midsize city envious, including two 18-hole golf courses, a small airport and a power grid…Public universities across the U.S. have seen financial support from state governments decline, and have faced growing criticism for raising tuition to help cover the gap. Tuition and student fees at four-year public universities rose more than 70% over the past decade, according to the College Board, while state appropriations per full-time student fell more than 20%. That has prompted some universities to turn to the private sector for services beyond common areas such as bookstores and restaurants. The University of Kentucky announced plans in December to transfer control of its dormitories to a private company in exchange for up to $500 million in upgrades and new construction. Portland State University in Portland, Ore., signed a deal with American Campus Communities Inc. in 2010 to build a $90 million, nearly 1,000-bed dorm on campus that is scheduled to open this fall…Some students and staffers worry that a private-sector operator would be tougher with parking fines, among other concerns, and contend officials haven’t provided enough information to show the school wouldn’t be better off financially in the long run managing parking itself. The Wall Street Journal

NJ: Some of Christie’s biggest bills match model legislation from ALEC
ALEC has quietly made its mark on the political landscape by providing state governments with mock-up bills that academic and political experts say are, for the most part, tailored to fit a conservative agenda. In recent years, states — particularly those with new Republican governors and legislatures — have been flooded with ALEC’s model bills. Nearly 1,000 of them are introduced every year, and roughly one-fifth of those become law, according to ALEC’s own count. ALEC’s bills are especially attractive because they are written so they can virtually be copied and pasted onto legislative proposals across the land…A Star-Ledger analysis of hundreds of documents shows that ALEC bills are surfacing in New Jersey, where Republican Gov. Chris Christie is trying to remake the state, frequently against the wishes of a Democrat-controlled Legislature. Drawing on bills crafted by the council, on New Jersey legislation and dozens of e-mails by Christie staffers and others, The Star-Ledger found a pattern of similarities between ALEC’s proposals and several measures championed by the Christie administration. At least three bills, one executive order and one agency rule accomplish the same goals set out by ALEC using the same specific policies. In eight passages contained in those documents, New Jersey initiatives and ALEC proposals line up almost word for word. Two other Republican bills not pushed by the governor’s office are nearly identical to ALEC models…There is nothing illegal in what ALEC does or in using its bills, but critics say New Jersey officials are handing off a cardinal duty — do your own work — to a national group with unique ties to the business world. If they’re relying on templates, critics add, state officials should publicly acknowledge any work that they do not do themselves and the source of any proposals that aren’t their own, especially when that source has an agenda. The Star-Ledger

IL:Chicago not yet grounding Midway privatization possibility
The $2.5 billion privatization of Midway Airport that collapsed in 2009 for lack of financing may not be quite as dead as Mayor Rahm Emanuel would like Chicagoans still livid about the parking meter deal to believe. Earlier this week, Emanuel’s Chief Financial Officer Lois Scott wrote a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration asking for one last extension — until Dec. 31 — in the deadline to decide whether to revive the deal or permanently pull the plug…Determined to avoid the political furor that followed Daley’s decision to privatize Chicago parking meters, Emanuel campaigned on a promise to permanently ground the Midway deal. The mayor emphatically repeated that pledge just a week ago. But, the city’s decision to seek a pair of extensions from the FAA — and the background of two key members of Emanuel’s financial team — has raised suspicions. Scott co-founded a firm that provided strategic financial advice to state and local governments across the country about privatization. And as a private attorney, Budget Director Alex Holt advised the group that was poised to acquire Midway before the deal fell apart. The 2009 collapse of the Midway deal left Chicago taxpayers with a $126 million down payment but no apparent way to shore up underfunded city pensions that threaten to become a financial albatross for future generations of property owners. The 99-year lease would have allowed Midway Investment and Development Company LLC to pocket airport revenues that topped $130 million in 2006, including parking, concessions, and passenger facility charges. Chicago Sun-Times

PA: Gov. Corbett considers privatizing state lottery
Gov. Tom Corbett is taking steps toward hiring a private company to run the Pennsylvania state lottery, the latest move by the Republican to shift state services to the private sector. The administration has briefed top lawmakers and labor union representatives on an idea it is billing as an effort to improve cash flow to better afford the rising cost of programs for the elderly…Other governors, such as Ohio’s John Kasic, have raised the idea recently, although states are limited by federal guidelines as to the extent of control that a private company can have. For instance, a 2008 memorandum from the U.S. Department of Justice said it is permissible for a state to contract with a private lottery manager, but not to hand significant control of it to the company in exchange for a large, up-front payment or an annual payment. Last year, a private group that includes GTECH and Scientific Games took over management of Illinois’ lottery with promises to boost sales and revenue. The group gets a $15 million-a-year management fee and a percentage of profits if it produces above a certain level. Currently, the Pennsylvania Lottery is run by the Department of Revenue. Should Pennsylvania hire a private manager, it is not clear what would happen to the 233 unionized employees who work for the 40-year-old Pennsylvania Lottery. David Fillman, executive director of Council 13 AFSCME, which represents the employees, said he told Corbett’s Office of Administration in a recent meeting that the union would fight the move. “My first question for the administration was, ‘What’s broken with this thing that we have to fix?”’ Fillman said Saturday. “It’s not broken. It’s working very well.”  The Mercury

MI: Unions would face cuts under Michigan’s new plan to save Detroit
Gov. Rick Snyder’s latest version of a consent agreement gives the Detroit City Council and the mayor more power than the previous proposal, but it adds a twist that has put the council in a tough predicament. The new plan calls for the city to ignore recently ratified union contracts and renegotiate them this summer. And it includes permission to, among other things, outsource work and consolidate departments. The state’s latest proposal was made public Thursday. Council members spent about five hours familiarizing themselves with the document, but most still gave it the cold shoulder.  Detroit Free Press

WI: Parts of state’s anti-union law ruled unconstitutional
A federal judge concluded on Friday that parts of a law limiting public sector unions in Wisconsin — the law that started a political battle that led to Gov. Scott Walker’s recall election — violate the Constitution. The judge’s opinion was viewed as a partial victory for labor unions, though the judge also upheld central elements of the law. New York Times

WI: Judge halts Milwaukee sheriff’s plan to privatize court bailiffs
Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr.’s plan to privatize courtroom bailiffs won’t fly – at least not for now. Judge Dominic D’Amato ruled that Clarke could not place private security guards in courtrooms, a move the sheriff had already started by issuing a $1.4 million contract with G4S Secure Solutions. The firm, formerly known as Wackenhut, is an international company that provides personnel and technology services. D’Amato issued a temporary injunction halting the deployment of 25 part-time G4S guards, siding with the county Deputy Sheriffs’ Association. Clarke argued that he had the power to hire the G4S guards as an emergency stopgap and wanted that to avoid paying full-time bailiffs overtime…The deputies’ union has resisted opening the door to part-time bailiffs or private security for the courtroom. Under current staffing, felony courts have two bailiffs each, while misdemeanor and civil courts have one. Roy Felber, president of the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association, said Friday the ruling was “a big win for us. I’m very disgusted that we are trying to privatize law enforcement.” Private security guards would be loyal to their company, not to the county, Felber said. Journal Sentinel

NC: Privatizing pre-K hurts rural counties – editorial
N.C. lawmakers on a House panel wisely backed off recommendations last month that would have taken away access to state pre-kindergarten programs from thousands of poor N.C. children. The panel’s draft report had included recommendations to dramatically raise the income eligibility guidelines – a change that would disqualify many financially struggling families from participating. Members also backed away from a recommendation that state pre-K be provided solely in private child care facilities – not in public schools…A new report from the N.C. Justice Center’s N.C. Budget and Tax Center provides good ammunition to explain why keeping pre-K in public schools has merit. Findings from that study released last week show that public schools play a major role in North Carolina’s pre-K program. In 17 counties, 100 percent of the pre-K slots were in public schools as of January of this year. Those counties are rural and most are high-poverty…The impact on rural counties is evident. Privatizing this program would mean no pre-kindergarten for many of them, particularly since these rural, high-poverty counties don’t have networks of private child-care centers where pre-K could be housed instead. Charlotte Observer

FL: Can a 100% private passenger rail line turn a profit?
Florida East Coast Railway is about to get a new look, with its new, all-private passenger rail line…They’re calling it All Aboard Florida, and it comes just about a year after Governor Rick Scott rejected $2.4 billion in federal funds to build a far less ambitious 85-mile line from Tampa to Orlando. It’s no coincidence that All Aboard Florida’s 240-mile line also centers on Orlando, the most-visited city in the United States according to Forbes. (Miami is number five.) A Tampa-to-Jacksonville segment could be added on later. Streetsblog