Need solid examples of disastrous results of privatization of public works...

[Texacon]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002426706#post14

tk2kewl (10,666 posts) Profile Journal Send DU Mail Ignore


 Need solid examples of disastrous results of privatization of public works...

Last edited Thu Mar 15, 2012, 09:06 AM USA/ET - Edit history (3)

specifically sewage treatment and water treatment and distribution.

I just found out the county I live in is planning to sell or lease its sewage treatment plants and there is a civic association meeting about the plan being held tonight.

I will be googling but I know many of my friends here will point me in the right direction.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 tk2kewl

Edit: here is the article about the county legislator opposing the plan: http://lynbrook.patch.com/articles/denenberg-calls-for-state-investigation-into-sewage-treatment-plant-privatization-proposal
 

Heh.  They can't find any. 

tularetom (15,599 posts) Profile Journal Send DU Mail Ignore

8. Here's an article about the City of Stockton's abortive attempt to privatize

http://www.pacinst.org/topics/water_and_sustainability/water_privatization/stockton/

And another one about the impending bankruptcy of the City of Stockton

http://www.npr.org/2012/03/11/148384030/an-example-to-avoid-city-of-stockton-on-the-brink

Did the first one lead to the second one? You'll have to decide that but what it does tell me is that Stockton's city dads are not doing a very good job.

Hope this helps. Privatization of municipal services is never a good idea.

 

From the second article;

Now, the bill for those public employee benefits has come due. At a recent news conference, Stockton City Manager Bob Deis said that at one point in the 1990s, Stockton offered one of the most generous health plans in California.

"City employees only had to work one month, and then they could retire, and the city would pick up their insurance for free for them and their spouse for the rest of their lives," he said.

Deis said that plan resembled a "Ponzi scheme."

"Right now, we have an unfunded liability in the retiree health program around $450 million," he said.

Yup, must have been from the privatization.  OP DUmmie is going to use that article to FIGHT THIS BS!!
 

As someone who has ran a water and waste water system as a private entity I can tell you we strived to keep costs as low as possible otherwise you could be replaced.  There was no such thing as "That's not my job..."

Interesting thread albeit short at this point.

KC

[GOBUCKS]

Need solid examples of disastrous results of privatization of public works...
specifically sewage treatment and water treatment and distribution.

Would that be like the city of Omaha paying a deadbeat like Socialist Steve Dawes for years, while he has not given even a single honest day's work.

[Texacon]

Uh, who's this guy?

badtoworse (1,801 posts) Profile Journal Send DU Mail Ignore

21. After reading the article, I get the impression that Jefferson County was at fault

And that the sewer system wasn't privatized, but a receiver was appointed to run it by the bankruptcy judge. That is not the same as privatizing.

badtoworse (1,801 posts) Profile Journal Send DU Mail Ignore

22. In such situations, the privatized asset generally earns a regulated or agreed to return on equity

While the return on the asset represents a cost to the ratepayers, the city or county privatizing the asset now has money that can be used to retire debt or fund expenditures that would have otherwise involved borrowing or increased taxes. It's also possible that the private company can operate the facility at lower cost than a municipality.

On the basis of total cost borne by the taxpaers/ratepayers, I would say the transaction is likely to be neutral and might actually save money.

badtoworse (1,801 posts) Profile Journal Send DU Mail Ignore

23. Why are you assuming it will be a disaster?

Why don't you get into the details of the proposed transaction and form an opinion based on the merits?

KC

[NHSparky]

Hate to tell ya, DUmmies, but I can give you a lot of examples of how the government took over private enterprises or utilities and ****ed them up beyond all recognition.  Other way around, not so much.

[thundley4]

The better question would be to name one government agency that isn't teeming with waste and fraud.