Russell Moore: Taveras and Cronyism
Monday, May 05, 2014
All these fiascoes are a sad commentary on a Mayor who entered his position with so much promise, believes Russell Moore.
Golocalprov.com reported last week that Taveras awarded his former chief of staff, Michael D'Amico a $200 per hour city contract to consult with him on the city budget. This contract was hammered out while D'Amico was still serving as the mayor's $196,000 per year chief of staff.
I would've personally told the Mayor for free that he raised taxes so much last year that he doesn't need to raise them again this year. To me, it seems pretty convenient that he's running for Governor this year.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe great negotiator?
For a guy that goes around the state bragging about how much of a great negotiator he is, it sure doesn't sound like he was being very tough on D'Amico—his childhood friend.
I know that some people aren't very mathematically inclined, so let me just point out that that accounts to a very big raise. When D'Amico was making $196,000 per year, he was making roughly $95 per hour for his work. Last time I checked, $200 is more than double that based on an hourly rate.
Given his performance here, I sure don't want Taveras negotiating on behalf of my money.
And, how could I have forgotten, the contract assumes that D'Amico can't afford to pay for his own travel expenses either, so the taxpayers will also have to pick them up. Nobody would expect Mr. D'Amico to have to pay for his own parking, would we? The horror!
The rules don’t apply
Here's the kicker: all this was done in such a way so as to avoid city rules. Under the rules set forth by both city ordinance and the city charter, any purchase of services between $500 and $5,000 must be made by the director of public property by going out to bid. Any purchases worth $5,000 or more must go out to bid and go before the Board of Contract and Supply.
But apparently, when you're Angel Taveras, you don't have to follow the rules. So this deal never went out to bid. And the city council never got the chance to vet this deal.
Kudos to former Council President and Acting Mayor, and current State Representative John Lombardi as well as current councilman Kevin Jackson and Sabina Matos for speaking out against this latest affront.
Where’s the outrage?
Did we hear anything from any of Rhode Island's scores of "good government" groups? Common Cause? Rhode Island Tea Party? Ocean State Tea Party In Action? Rhode Island Taxpayer? From each of those supposed good government groups, all we could hear were the sound of crickets chirping.
Good government processes exist for a reason. They're not feel good measures. Had this contract been sent out to bid, other organizations, companies, and people could have offered their services at a lower price.
Cronyism
Then, even if Taveras had his heart set on hiring his childhood friend (what a way to go about business), he could have had a better idea of what rate of pay he should have been awarded.
Trust me on this one, Providence surely could have found someone to do this cheaper than $200 per hour. Remember that next times you pay the sales tax or income tax, as Providence gets scores of revenue from the state sales tax.
You really can't blame Mr. D'Amico. He wasn't elected by the people of Providence to be a financial watchdog for their best interests. The man has always really been a businessman at heart. Most people would do just about anything for $200 an hour.
Taveras, however, is a completely different story. First, he negotiates a pension settlement with the city employees that merely puts off the city's financial crisis long enough for him to run for Governor. The Providence pension system, after his much-heralded "reforms", is by his own numbers, funded at 31 percent. Moody's analysis says it's funded at 22 percent. That's pathetic.
Whomever is unlucky enough to be elected the city's next Mayor is going to have some serious problems to deal with—another "Category 5 hurricane" if you will.
Bullying and deception
To add insult to injury, Taveras has the nerve to compare his negotiated pension "reforms" to those proposed by General Treasurer Gina Raimondo and enacted by the legislature. It's like comparing a sand castle to one of The Great Pyramids.
Then he closed the Davey pool last year because councilman Davian Sanchez followed his conscience and refused to vote against his severely flawed budget last year that raised taxes while providing no structural changes to city government. The pool was located in Sanchez's district.
All these fiascoes are a sad commentary on a Mayor who entered his position with so much promise. Everyone wanted to root for Taveras, myself included, a man who went from "Head Start to Harvard".
But at the same time, one would like to think that he learned more than cronyism, bullying tactics, and deception at the Ivy League school.
A native Rhode Islander, Russell J. Moore is a graduate of Providence College and St. Raphael Academy. He worked as a news reporter for 7 years (2004-2010), 5 of which with The Warwick Beacon, focusing on government. He continues to keep a close eye on the inner workings of Rhode Islands state and local governments.
Related Slideshow: Taveras’ Staff Revolving Door
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