State wants say on Port Authority board

State wants say on Port Authority board: "State wants say on Port Authority board
Harrisburg Republicans complain of subsidization without representation"

I've been worried about the fact that these boards are hand-picked and never accountable for years. But I want the boards to be accountable to the citizens, the voters, the public. The fat-cat legislatures want the accountability to reside with them. They want power in their pockets.

Nuts to them.

Make Authority Boards, all of them, subject to "retention votes."

Upon appointment to a board, the board member begins service. At the next election, that person needs to win more than 50-percent approval to retain the seat.

In two years time, that person comes up for another retention vote. Then the bar is raised and that person needs to get a 70% vote for retention.

In two additional years, at four years, that vote needs to be at 80% for retention vote.

In two additional years, at six yeas, that vote needs to be at 90% for retention.

Every year after, the board member needs a 90% -- a super-doper majority -- to retain his seat.

PAT to FIRE its I.T. Department. Oh my gosh!

The radio news reported that a big shake up is about to occur at PAT. This includes the termination of the PAT's IT Department.

I've called for a greater investment in IT, not a removal of it.

In other parts of the world, the trend is to get better relationships among leadership and the IT pros. In Pittsburgh, we go backwards. We're going the wrong way.

Councillors And IT Departments Must Build Stronger Relations.

Councils' IT departments must build stronger relationships with elected members if they are to gain the benefits of new technology, a recently published report from the Society of IT Management's Socitm Insight team has found.

The report, the first of its kind, looked at the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) by councillors, elected representatives, scrutiny members, election campaigners and elected members.

The report, called 'Not For Kissing Babies', is aimed at IT heads of departments and managers, and calls on the local authority ICT service to actively encourage elected members to use technologies. However, it may take time to build a good relationship with them, the report warned.

The report suggests that greater use of ICT could ultimately translate into more votes for politicians. Elected members who use ICT could open up new communication channels and find that this increased openness and higher profile "increases public support in the ballot box."

A shorter, special briefing aimed at elected members was published alongside the report, advocating the use of ICTs to help elected members do their job more efficiently; save time; improve communication with people; and balance their various roles. To obtain a copy of the report aimed at councillors, which costs 10 per copy or five pounds per copy if 10 or more are ordered, go to: www.socitm.gov.uk.

I'm sure that IT Departments can get expensive. I'm sure that many IT projects are not fruitful. I'm sure that IT Departments need supervision, strong managers, accountability and production. I'm sure many IT Departments are in need of a good shake up. But, we've got to get elected leaders who are NOT scared to spend efforts in these settings and can make clear decisions for the right reasons and best priorities.

I value IT efforts. Others around here do not.

Financing and Managing Transportation in PA

NEWS RELEASE from the Commonwealth Foundation

Commonwealth Foundation report recommends Public-Private Partnerships

Harrisburg, PA - Today, the Commonwealth Foundation released a new report, The Emerging Paradigm: Financing and Managing Pennsylvania's Transportation Infrastructure and Mass Transit, which examines the potential for Public-Private Partnerships (P3s) in transportation. The Emerging Paradigm highlights successful transportation P3s across the nation and internationally, and examines the potential for leasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike and utilizing competitive contracting in mass transit.

Last November, Governor Ed Rendell's Pennsylvania Transportation Funding and Reform Commission recommended $1.7 billion in additional transportation spending for highways, bridges, and mass transit. As part of his 2007-08 budget proposal, Governor Rendell included funding options which include a possible lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike to a private contractor to generate $965 million annually for roads and bridges.

The decision to explore a lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike represents the emergence of a new funding paradigm in transportation policy across the nation. Instead of relying solely on traditional revenue sources-gas and vehicle taxes-state and local transportation agencies are increasingly looking to supplement those sources with private investment through Public-Private Partnerships (P3s). P3s can build new infrastructure, maintain existing infrastructure, and operate existing services, including mass transit.

"We applaud the Governor's willingness to explore a Turnpike lease as a solution to our transportation funding and management needs, particularly as an alternative to higher taxes," said Matthew Brouillette, president of the Commonwealth Foundation and co-author of The Emerging Paradigm. "The leasing of toll roads have been successful in other parts of the country and internationally, both in terms of generating new revenue and in the delivery of quality service."

The Emerging Paradigm explores the P3 experiences of other states and cities. For example, in 2005, leases of two toll roads-the 99-year lease of the 7.8-mile Chicago Skyway and the 75-year lease of the 157-mile Indiana Toll Road-garnered the City of Chicago nearly $2 billion and the State of Indiana more than $3.8 billion. The upfront payment to Indiana is generating more than $500,000 in interest per day to fund its transportation needs without raising taxes or fees.

"Additionally, Governor Rendell and lawmakers need to expand the utilization of P3s beyond just the Turnpike. Particularly, P3s could be utilized in the delivery of mass transit services in Pennsylvania," said Brouillette.

Governor Rendell's budget proposal included a new 6.17% Oil Company Gross Profits Tax to generate $760 million in new mass transit subsidies. The Emerging Paradigm examines how Pennsylvania could utilize "competitive contracting"-a form of a public-private partnership-to better finance and manage mass transit.

American cities like San Diego, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston, as well as foreign cities such as London, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Melbourne and Tokyo, have successfully embraced "competitive contracting" of transit services. Government determines the level of service and maintains oversight of the private contractor for the quality of service. "Competitive contracting" has proven to provide more efficient and mass effective mass transit services.

The Emerging Paradigm also explores additional opportunities for P3 utilization in transportation, and concludes with a discussion about the benefits of P3s and addresses the common concerns about Public-Private Partnerships.

"Public-private partnerships are being utilized by governments everywhere as a means to meet the growing transportation demands," stated Geoff Segal, Director of Privatization and Government Reform at Reason Foundation, and co-author of The Emerging Paradigm. "Partnering with the private sector to manage assets such as the Turnpike or mass transit agencies gives policymakers an alternative to raising taxes or fees."

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Policy Report, The Emerging Paradigm: Financing and Managing Pennsylvania's Transportation Infrastructure and Mass Transit, is available online at www.CommonwealthFoundation.org.

The Commonwealth Foundation is an independent, non-profit public policy research and educational institute based in Harrisburg, PA.