Honest Government
Dear Honest Citizens:
Today, Harry Jaffe wrote a column in The Washington Examiner that
explains a lot that’s wrong with our city’s government, “Celebrate
Our New Schools — and the Men Responsible,” http://tinyurl.com/3q8den6.
Jaffe praises the city’s new and renovated public school buildings and
then praises former Mayor Fenty and the person in charge of school
construction during Fenty’s administration, Allen Lew. Lew’s work
was thought of so highly by Mayor Vincent Gray that Gray promoted him to
be his City Administrator.
Jaffe ignores — in fact, he doesn’t mention at all — the DC
Auditor’s report on Lew’s management of the Office of Public
Education Facilities Modernization (http://www.dcwatch.com/auditor/audit110511.pdf,
summarized at http://www.dcwatch.com/themail/2011/11-05-08.htm;
and the Inspector General’s report that repeated and reinforced the DC
Auditor’s report, http://www.dcwatch.com/govern/ig110629.pdf.
Those reports showed a pattern of Lew’s mismanagement, favoritism, and
misspending of public funds. Jaffe doesn’t care about waste and
corruption in public projects, and he echoes Gray’s line that Lew got
the work done, so we shouldn’t care much about how he did it. Waste
and corruption aren’t important; they aren’t even noticed, because
the schools are new and shiny.
If we believe Jaffe’s and Gray’s argument, we shouldn’t want an
honest government, because a corrupt one works so well.
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Please write; I miss hearing from you. I know that things are
discouraging, but themail is intended to be an open E-mail forum in
which citizens of DC communicate with each other, not just hear from
Dorothy and me or get government press releases. This forum is whatever
you make it. Write not just about politics or government, but about
whatever is going on in town. Let us know what’s going on in your
neighborhood; tell us the news about your ward. (And, as I’ve been
writing for the past few issues, tell us who the promising new candidate
for public office is.)
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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Complete the Health Insurance Exchange Survey
Michelle Phipps-Evans, michelle.phipps-evans@dc.gov
The Mayor’s Health Reform Implementation Committee (HRIC) is
seeking public input on planning for a Health Insurance Exchange for
District residents. A Health Insurance Exchange (HIX), which is similar
to a virtual marketplace, is required by the federal health care reform
law, the Affordable Care Act, and will serve a critical function in
helping District residents secure affordable health care coverage.
The HRIC member agencies — the District Departments of Health Care
Finance; Insurance, Securities and Banking; and Health — have been
hosting several public meetings to garner public input in the planning
process, with more scheduled. However, the HRIC developed a survey to
offer another avenue for sharing thoughts and suggestions. This is the
first of several surveys that will be conducted during the planning
phase for the HIX.
The Health Insurance Exchange survey will be available on the HRIC
web site at http://www.healthreform.dc.gov
until August 31. Residents may request a paper copy by contacting Health
Policy Analyst Brendan Rose at Brendan.Rose@dc.gov
or at 442-7811. Also, check the web site for the dates for the other
community meetings.
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DPW Will Collect Residential Trash/Recycling
Starting at 7:00 a.m. During the Week of August 15
Kevin Twine, kevin.twine@dc.gov
In light of a five-day forecast with highs ranging from 82-87° F,
The DC Department of Public Works announced that its trash and recycling
crews will begin their collections at the regular time, 7:00 a.m.,
throughout the week of August 15. During the summer, when the
temperature is predicted to be 90° or higher or the Metropolitan
Washington Council of Governments announces unhealthy air quality (Code
Orange or Code Red days), DPW collection crews begin their work at 6:00
a.m. to avoid health or environmental issues.
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DMV to Extend Online Research Requests
Kevin Twine, kevin.twine@dc.gov
In the first two weeks of the ticket amnesty program, the District
Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has collected $393,647 in revenue,
and 7,400 tickets have been paid. Customers have been utilizing a newly
created web-based form to learn the exact amount they owe. To keep up
with the demand, DMV will now offer this research service through
September 9, as it was originally scheduled to expire August 15.
To date, DMV is processing about 118 online research requests a day.
A total of 1,299 research forms have been submitted. Customers using
this service can expect to receive a response within five business days.
The ticket amnesty program, which is available for tickets issued prior
to January 1, 2010, runs through January 27, 2012. Additional
information about the program is available at http://dmv.dc.gov
or contact Sylvia T. Ballinger, 729-7020, sylvia.ballinger@dc.gov
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