Headlines
IN: Toll Road money running out as state prepares to elect new governor
VA: Groups oppose privatizing sex offender program
FL: Tab for taxpayers in suits over Scott-backed laws hefty and growing
WA: Washington liquor privatization boosts sales in Idaho
NY: NYC extends deadline for first step in parking meter contract
Choices Often Limited in ‘School Choice’ Programs
Privatization: The Big Joke That Isn’t Funny – commentary

IN:  Toll Road money running out as state prepares to elect new governor
…Lawmakers and the new governor also will have to find roughly $500 million each year to pay for transportation projects as the money from the leasing of the Indiana Toll Road runs out. “Highway funding is going to be a big issue,” said House Ways and Means Chairman Jeff Espich, R-Uniondale, who is not seeking re-election after more than four decades in the General Assembly. Espich also notes that the economic picture could turn again at any time, causing the state to begin losing money as it did during the Great Recession. Chesterton Tribune

VA: Groups oppose privatizing sex offender program
Eleven organizations sent a letter to Virginia’s governor Monday opposing offers by two companies to operate a state facility that detains violent sex offenders for treatment after their sentences are completed. State officials are considering privatization as a way to control costs of the rapidly expanding civil commitment program at the Virginia Center for Behavioral Rehabilitation in Burkeville. The state spends about $97,000 annually to treat each offender at the 300-bed facility — more than quadruple the cost of housing a prisoner. The program’s budget has increased tenfold since it started in 2004. A report late last year by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, the General Assembly’s investigative arm, projected the number of committed offenders could reach 600 by 2016 unless something is done to slow the program’s growth. The facility now houses 289, and preparations for double-bunking are under way. “What is currently an overcrowded situation at VCBR could become dramatically worse if run by a company that increases its profits at the expense of programs and operations, including security, in the facility,” the coalition of civil rights, labor, criminal justice reform and religious organizations said in its letter to Gov. Bob McDonnell. The organizations said the companies that have submitted proposals have had problems running some facilities elsewhere.  The News Leader

FL: Tab for taxpayers in suits over Scott-backed laws hefty and growing
Lawsuits over major legislation championed by Gov. Rick Scott more than a year ago are still working their way through the courts, and the legal bills for Florida’s taxpayers continue to mount….So far, the total legal tab on these cases combined is $888,317.51…Here’s an update of some of the biggest lawsuits the state is currently defending against and the bill paid by taxpayers so far….Prison privatization Lawsuit: In 2011, lawmakers put language in the state budget to privatize more than two dozen prisons and correctional facilities  in South Florida. The Police Benevolent Association sued, saying the move was unconstitutional. Status: A Leon County circuit judge ruled that lawmakers had the right to privatize if they passed a separate piece of legislation, but not by doing it through the budget process. Bondi appealed at the request of the Legislature, but the 1st District Court of Appeal ruled last week that Bondi was ineligible to make the appeal. How much has it cost? This case was handled by Bondi’s office at a cost of $19,789.50.   Orlando Sentinel

WA: Washington liquor privatization boosts sales in Idaho
Idaho liquor officials say border sales are up after a change in the law in Washington state made Idaho booze cheaper. Washington privatized its liquor market but added a 10 percent distributor fee and a 17 percent retail fee to replace money the state lost when it shut down its state-run liquor stores. The Idaho Statesman reports the increase in sales along the Idaho border mirrors the increase seen along the Washington-Oregon border. Oregon reported sales rose 35 percent in June along the border, bringing Oregon $870,000 more than usual. That’s slightly more than Idaho’s border-store sales. Both Idaho and Oregon have a state-run liquor market. KING5.com

NY: NYC extends deadline for first step in parking meter contract
New York City is extending by three weeks its deadline to request qualifications from bidders interested in leasing the country’s largest parking system – with 80,800 parking spaces – after the companies requested additional information, a spokeswoman for Mayor Michael Bloomberg said on Monday. Since last year, the city has been studying hiring a private manager to run the system more efficiently and install smart parking meters.Other U.S. cities are already exploring more modern parking meters. Denver, Colorado, and Santa Monica, California, have parking meters that use underground sensors to erase leftover time. Solar-powered meters also are available as are meters that let drivers pay with mobile phones…The Bloomberg administration has said it will not require any upfront payment and that it will avoid some of the problems other cities have encountered with similar privatizations…It will also require a parking meter operator to pledge $100 million of collateral and have experience running at least 100,000 parking spaces. Unions have contested the plan to privatize New York City’s parking meters because they are concerned that the 466 unionized workers who now collect parking fees would be laid off. Lillian Roberts, executive director of District Council 37, the largest municipal union, said on Monday that a private parking contract was unnecessary because “city parking system workers are already doing an excellent job, generating approximately $1.2 million per worker in revenue.”  Reuters

Choices Often Limited in ‘School Choice’ Programs
…Scholarship tax credit and voucher programs, like EdChoice, are growing rapidly across the country. Louisiana created both a statewide voucher program and a scholarship tax credit program this year. Virginia, New Hampshire and Oklahoma also recently created scholarship tax credit programs. But a Stateline analysis found that many private schools choose not to participate in these “school choice” programs. Many are wary of government regulations, especially standardized test requirements. Others are concerned about the possible impact on their educational mission, among other things.  Stateline

Privatization: The Big Joke That Isn’t Funny – commentary
The privatization of public goods and services turns basic human needs into products to buy and sell. That’s more than a joke, it’s an insult, it’s a perversion. It generally benefits only a privileged group of businesspeople and their companies while increasing inequality and undermining the common good. Various studies have identified the ‘benefits’ of privatization as profitability and productivity, efficiency, wider share ownership and good investment returns. These are business benefits. More balanced studies consider the effects on average people, who have paid into a long-established societal support system for their schools and emergency services, water and transportation systems, and eventually health care and retirement benefits. These studies have concluded that: Privatization has generated large profits for new owners but these have not been shared with the general public. The potential benefits of privatization are often outweighed by high contracting costs and opportunism.Most privatization programs appear to have worsened the distribution of assets and income, at least in the short run…In the U.S. and around the world, privatization has simply not worked in industries that provide essential public goods and services. Common Dreams