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October 24, 2007

Healthy

Dear Health Care Consumers:

Years later, the city is still paying for the costly mistake of closing our only public hospital, DC General, in southeast. After spending tens of millions of dollars propping up the former owners of Greater Southeast Community Hospital — has anyone ever calculated the total amount of subsidies — the government is now spending $79 million to underwrite the purchase of Greater Southeast by a new buyer, Specialty Hospitals of America.

This week, Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi warned that the $79 million may be just the down payment that DC taxpayers will be required to pay (http://www.dcwatch.com/govern/cfo071023.htm). Gandhi wrote that he had three concerns: first, that the company buying the hospital, Specialty Hospitals of America, is not financially stable. Its unaudited financial statements show that it is $34 million in debt, which it offsets by claiming an asset of $34 million in good will. He also writes, second, that SHA’s five-year business plan for the hospital lacks detail, and does not provide a convincing case that it will be financially successful. Third, he warns that the District’s lien on the hospital site, which it is counting on to secure its investment, will have to be at least partially released in order to allow future development on the site.

When councilmembers were faced this week with these problems and the likelihood of the District government’s ballooning future costs to underwrite Specialty Hospitals of America, they collectively shrugged their shoulders. Hey, it’s not their money. More documents regarding the sale are linked to at http://www.dcwatch.com/issues/health.htm.

Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com

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Council Policy
Dorothy Brizill, dorothy@dcwatch.com

When he was elected last November as chairman of the city council, Vincent Gray said that he would propose several new initiatives with regard to the workings of the council. In his inaugural address in January, Gray detailed some of these initiatives to “expand the council’s capacity to perform our basic functions,” including the creation of a policy office “to support the work of councilmembers in tackling broad, crosscutting policy issues” (http://www.dcwatch.com/council/070103.htm). After nearly nine months in office, Chairman Gray held a press conference on October 1 to announce the establishment of the Office of Policy Analysis (OPA) and the Policy Advisory Council.

According to Gray, OPA “has been formed as a centralized office of the Council of the District of Columbia with the mission to provide comprehensive, nonpartisan, and objective research and analysis on defined legislative/policy issues to members of the council.” In his press release, Gray also argued that OPA will result in “enhanced policy creation and development.” The director of OPA will be Donna Cooper, a former aide to Councilman Orange and former clerk of the Committee on Government Operations. The office will have four policy analysts and a budget of $311,141 for FY2008. Gray’s proposal also calls for the creation of a Policy Advisory Council to “provide policy guidance and support to the newly created Office of Policy Analysis.” At the October 1 press conference, Gray announced that Brookings scholar Alice Rivlin, a former chair of the District’s Financial Control Board, would chair the Advisory Council. Gray bristled when asked the other members of the Advisory Council, and did not release their names until October 22, at another press conference (http://www.dcwatch.com/council/071022.htm).

Reviewing the membership of the Advisory Council, one is struck by the following: 1) almost all the members are academics, representing virtually every college and university in the District, despite serious town-gown conflicts that divide many neighborhoods in DC. The policy directive establishing the Advisory Council makes it clear that members “who are affiliated with policy organizations and/or institutions, also serve as formal points of contact for their respective organization/institution.” 2) Most of the members are active in national issues, and only a few are knowledgeable or experienced in local DC issues, certainly not regarding the workings of the council. 3) The Advisory Council has no political diversity; almost all members represent the liberal wing of the Democratic party. 4) Most importantly, the Advisory Council contains no representative of community or civic groups that have the most knowledge about the workings of the council and the most experience with the council’s running roughshod over residents’ interests. The council may be sick and in need of healing intervention — even drastic surgery — but instead of consulting experienced surgeons it has asked for advice from distinguished theoreticians who haven’t seen the inside of an operating room.

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Republican Committee calls for US Attorney to Investigate Councilmember Evans
Robert Kabel, DC Republican Committee, press@dcgop.com

[A letter to US Attorney Jeffrey Taylor] The DC Republican Committee brings to your attention recent media reports involving Ward 2 DC councilmember Jack Evans and lobbying firm Patton Boggs. In 2003, DC announced it had selected five firms to provide lobbying for the city. Records show the majority of fees have gone to Patton Boggs, the prominent firm based in the District that also employs DC Council member Jack Evans.

Mr. Evans is chairman of the DC Council’s Committee on Finance, overseeing the DC Office of the Chief Financial Officer, which is handling the lobbying contract. He earns about $92,500 as a council member and reported earning a Patton Boggs salary in 2006 of $240,000 a year, a raise of more than $50,000 above what the firm paid him in 2005, city records show. More recently, Mr. Evans voted to give a tax break to CareFirst in 2004 after Patton Boggs filed papers stating that the Evans lobbied Congress for the health care company, federal and city records show. His vote for the tax breaks came more than a year after his employer, law firm Patton Boggs LLP, had filed a report with the Senate that listed him as a lobbyist for CareFirst.

The DC Republican Committee requests your office to investigate if Mr. Evans violated the DC employee regulations, which states the following: 1803.1: For one (1) year after the date of initial employment with the District government, an employee required to make a disclosure under this section will be screened from, and shall not participate in any manner, in the District government’s decision to enter into, extend, modify, or renew a contract or consultancy engagement with the employee’s former employer (hereafter, “procurement action”). 1803.1 (a) An employee shall avoid action, whether or not specifically prohibited by this chapter, which might result in or create the appearance of the following: (1) Using public office for private gain; (2) Giving preferential treatment to any person; (3) Impeding government efficiency or economy; (4) Losing complete independence or impartiality; (5) Making a government decision outside official channels; or (6) Affecting adversely the confidence of the public in the integrity of government. (Source: DC Employee Code of Conduct)

DC residents deserve nothing less then complete transparency from their elected officials and we hope your investigation will determine if a violation of law was committed.

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Zone System
John LaBelle, jlabelledc@starpower.net 

The best thing about taking cabs in DC under the zone system is that you can ask the driver how much the fare will be from point A to point B before getting into the cab. If you are unwilling to pay the quoted fare, then check with another driver, take the Metro, or walk.

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Taxis, Part 67 in an Ongoing Series
Zee Roe, cirdan0@yahoo.com

I’m not sure what to make of the outpouring of support for the zone system, other than perhaps that longtime DC residents seem to fear change. When I first arrived in DC, I got taken by cab drivers with every single ride. I learned the zone system, and its absurd number of surcharges and caveats (more or less). I always made a point to ask how much I owed, and (obviously, this is anecdotal) every single time the cab driver added a couple bucks on top of what I actually owed, and admitted it when corrected. Why bother reporting violators when there are nothing but?

Since then, I’ve stopped taking taxis altogether in protest of their abject corruption. I’ll give ‘em the respect that one of the other posters seems to think they deserve when they actually deserve it, not before. Meters might help, but until the rule allowing cab drivers to pick up multiple fares at the same time happens, I don’t think I’ll be changing my mind.

Props to congress (for once) for forcing Fenty to grow a spine, even if the taxicab commission hasn’t.

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Speed Traps
Mitch Wander, mitch@mytroops.com

For more current information than the web site that Ed Barron suggested to locate speed traps in DC [themail, October 21], you may want to check out the Metropolitan Police Department Automated Traffic Enforcement web page, http://mpdc.dc.gov/mpdc/cwp/view,a,1240,q,560157,mpdcNav_GID,1552,mpdcNav,|.asp.

From here you can access lists and maps of red-light and speed enforcement cameras. There are so many inaccuracies, outdated updates, and missing locations on the speedtrap.org page that it looks like that site wants you to get caught. The MPDC page is much more complete, current, and interactive. Plus, on the MPDC page you can suggest new locations online for red light and speed camera enforcement to help protect our children from crazy drivers.

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Speed Traps
Ron Linton, rmlch@rcn.com

Observing the speed limit makes speed traps moot.

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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS

Fall Household Hazardous Waste and Electronics Recycling, October 27
Nancee Lorn, nanceelorn@yahoo.com

The DC Department of Public Works (DPW) will hold its fall household hazardous waste and electronics recycling drop-off day on Saturday, October 27, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Trash Transfer Station at 3200 Benning Road, NE,

Residents may bring old cleaning and gardening chemicals; pesticides and poisons; acids, varnish and oil-based paints; solvents; aerosols; wood preservatives; spent batteries of all kinds; roofing tar; chemistry sets; automotive fluids, computer monitors, and TV screens to the collection site for free, environmentally safe disposal or recycling. Monitors and TV screens must be intact, not cracked, punctured, or shattered.

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The Washington Revels Celebrates a Tudor Christmas, December 8-16
Connie Ridgway, kaniru4 at yahoo dot com

Every year the Washington Revels presents a Winter Solstice/Christmas show at the George Washington University’s Lisner Auditorium for about 10,000 people over eight performances. This year we celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Washington Revels with a visit to Queen Elizabeth’s court (circa late 1500s). The music, dance, traditions and costumes of the period will transport you to a magical world. The Washington Post calls the Revels "one of those rare events that delight people of all ages."

This year’s show will run Saturday December 8 through Sunday December 16 (weekends only) in afternoons and evenings both weekends. Purchase your tickets through http://www.revelsdc.org, or call tix.com at 1-800-595-4849. Discounts available for families and groups. Call the Revels office at 723-7528 for more information.

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