European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 11, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 16. The stars and stripes sunday May 11, 1986 privatization government for Sale or Boon to taxpayers by Kay Bartlett associated press both Boston and new York cily Hadi rouble collecting lines Lor parking ticket Sand went to outside firms for help. It s patrol a  trend called privatization the contracting Oul of services Ihal traditionally have Boon provided by government. In Boston. I he contract Ullh the collection Agency wins a huge Success. Revenues went up 600 percent from 54.8 million in t981 to More than $28 million last year. The outside Agency collected 70 percent of the City s parking tickets. Whan the City handled the Job. It was a ludicrous 17 percent Back in 1976, in new York the privatization of the parking ,. Viot Lions collections led to the biggest City scandal in Over a decade with Indzel meals of City officials and former officials on bribery charges and the suicide of the Queens Borough president Donald Manes the two northeastern cities seem to demonstrate the Best and the worst of what critics of privatization Call government Tor Sale and what supporters say saves taxpayers a lot of Money. The extent to which privatization is creeping into local government is hard to measure it s not a tidal  says John Gunther executive director of the . Conference of mayors but people Are definitely moving to thai direction.". Ross Holf project director for the International City management association says. The general feeling is that there s an increase but we really have no hard figures to Back that  Irma did the most comprehensive Survey on privatization embracing 1,780 cities and counties in 1982 and is completing another study on what s happened since then. Gun her notes thai contracting with the private sector has been around a Long time i Don l know of anyone who does t use a commercial insurance Carrier or Security agencies for custodial work. Anal s new is the turning Over of institutions and their management to the private sector. For instance you hear a lot of Lalk about private jails and  private Falls have opened up around the country. Some run by non profit organizations such As the volunteers of America which operates a women s facility in Roseville Minn. Others Are run by profit. Making firms. The corrections corporation of America one of a growing number of such companies manages the Houston detention Canter of the immigration and naturalization service Legislatures in Texas and new Mexico have authorized private prisons and individual cities end counties have also turned Over prisons to private firms. In 1982, Florida became the Glrst state to turn Over its confinement program for Hoys convicted of serious crimes to a private concern. In Hamilton county tenn., the 325-bed, High Security solve Date detention Center is privately run. This is the most controversial area of privatization the american bar association and the american civil liberties Union among others have raised constitutional issues about whether private Industry can deprive a Man of his Freedom even though they Are doing it at the Behest of the government. Under the Constitution a judge remands a prisoner to the Warden of such and such an institution says Gunther. That s one 1hlng, but How does a judge remand a prisoner to the vice president of a corporation at the turn of the Century Many cities hired private companies to collect garbage provide lire Protection run the streetcars. Abuses crept in and a Reform movement of the 1920s returned most of the services guard Watchet Monitor in the control Booth at the Houston detention Center which i owned and operated by the Cotret Tiera corporation of America a profit mailing firm. To the municipalities. The pendulum is swinging Back Ralph w. Widnar an official of the Urban land Institute has said. It Wilsall Al Lila a lilo Juaiil Anu Ina Uwi mud Mih continue to swing until there is another round of abuses and scandals and then swing Back the other Way John Tepper Marlin president of the Council on municipal performance Lold a conference on privatization last december that what we in seeing globally is a reversal of the Shilt toward government ownership that began after wond War 11. There Are definite changes taking place because of the pressures on government to get things done quickly and  Many Public bodies Are Lelling to get their jobs done or Are running up tremendous deficits. The private sector is being called in to Cut Down on the bureaucracy and red tape that get in the Way of performance Merlin told the conference in Seattle attended by 50 municipal officials and corporate executives. Student of privatization concede it s no Panacea for the fiscal ailments of government although noting that some communities have benefited greatly by providing better services More cheaply. The american federation of state county and municipal employees Al Cio is the most vocal opponent of privatization but it s unable to say How Many Union jobs have Baan lost when private contractors took Over. Many of the Union employees were grandfathered into the new contract that is they Ware hired by the private contractors but were no longer Union members. The Public employees federation which Fias 1.4 million members does t like the whole principle. Public service provided directly by government is a distinguishing hallmark of a civilized society. It is also an american tradition that deserves the Best Protection and safeguards we can give  says the Union. It warns of certain Pitfalls in contracting like to whatling and  the first Means that a firm puts in an enticingly Low bid for a service then structures the contract so that the City or slate becomes Loo dependent on the contractor to Bach Oul. Trash collection for example requires expensive equipment. If a City Sells its trucks and farms Oul the service the contractor equipped Ullh the wherewithal holds most of the cards and May then raise his prices with impunity. In  specifications Are written in a Way that Only the mayor s brother in Law could possibly fulfil them. Pruvell Patlon covers a wide Range. Contracts have. Been let Lor everything from Public relations Lor the City to tree trimming ens Al control and air conditioning repairs. Some governmental functions land themselves More easily to contracting out. According to Irma s Survey vehicle lowing leads the list with 78 percent now handled by private firms. The second biggest contract nationwide is Legal services with 48 percent followed by Streetlight operation 38 percent solid waste disposal 26 percent Street repair 26 percent Hospital operation. 25 percent traffic signal maintenance 25 percent labor relations. 23 percent ambulance service 23 percent data processing. 22 percent building maintenance 19 percent Snow blowing 14 percent exterminating services 13 percent and payroll 10 percent. The least contracted services were firefighting traffic control and parking enforcement. Scottsdale ariz., a Small Community near Phoenix is usually cited As a town where contracting Oul has worked most efficiently. Rapidly growing Phoenix itself had contracted 450 services to the private sector As Early As 1980. The february Issue of private sector Public services a monthly newsletter of the Council on municipal performance looks at Brown county wis., where  Are reviewing bids to lease its 1 by bed nursing Home which projects a deficit of $ 1.5 million this year. The two private companies bidding Lor the lease Are uttering to assume that debt and pay the county fees ranging from 70,000 to $340,000 a year. There s no rhyme or Region for government to he doing what the private sector can do More economically country executive Dan Holloway told a newsletter interviewer every county in the state would like to get out of the nursing Home business. They Are keeping an Eye on us to see if we can do  the private sphere has an advantage because often its wage Scales Are lower than that of unionized Public employees which does t make organized labor Happy. Union critics contend the Quality of service is Likely to Sutler. Responds Holloway Hogwash. That s saying that municipal employees Are somehow anointed that because they happen to be highly paid Union people they can do a Job