Here's a story I did last night for News Service of Florida:
Gov. Charlie Crist vetoed a state contracting bill on Wednesday evening, saying that it “injects unnecessary uncertainty” into contracting because it requires certain contracts to be approved by state lawmakers.
The contracting bill was a top priority of Sen. J.D. Alexander, R-Lake Wales and Senate budget chief, who said the executive branch has let “contracts run amok” in recent years, including several of the privatization deals approved by former Gov. Jeb Bush.
But Crist – who earlier this week defended the work done by state agencies in handling contracts – said in a two-page veto letter that he was concerned that the requirements of the bill (SB 2694) would impose additional costs onto state government at a time that it can’t afford the extra expenses.
“I understand and appreciate that the legislative branch has concerns with some specific contracts that have been in place for several years,’’ wrote Crist. “…I am concerned that this bill imposes additional contracting requirements on state agencies and those who do business with the state at a time when we should be doing everything we can to streamline bureaucracy and stimulate economic growth.’’
The legislation required state lawmakers to sign off on any contract that requires leases or lease-purchases of equipment which cost more than $500,000 and the period of the lease exceeded one year. It also required lawmakers to approve contract that require the state to make payments in future years as part of a deal to lower the cost at the start.
Other provisions in the bill also required the state to give 30 days notice before approving contracts that cost more than $10 million a year or if the contract required little or no payment by the state. That last provision was aimed at contracts such as one the Department of Corrections signed several years ago with a private company to provide prison commissary services. Former DOC Secretary Jim Crosby wound up going to jail after he pled guilty to accepting kickbacks from a subcontractor with the vendor.
Alexander pushed the contracting bill while grappling with the state’s $6 billion budget shortfall this year. Lawmakers were upset about past contracts that have cost the state tens of millions of dollars, or required the state to keep making payments even if the state had to cut its overall budget.
During this past session, Alexander’s own committee heard a presentation that estimated that more than $200 million had been spent on technology contracts that did not work as initially promised. One of the most expensive was Project ASPIRE, an ambitious attempt to put in a new financial reporting and accounting system for the state. The project was started in August 2003 but was suspended by Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink in May 2007 after the state had spent $104 million.
Sink herself said on Wednesday that she was not opposed to the bill, saying “there have been abuses on contracting.’’
But others urged Crist to veto the bill. Associated Industries of Florida, a statewide business group, last week sent a letter to Crist asking him to kill it. Barney Bishop, president and CEO of AIF, said that the legislation was like “killing a mosquito with a sledgehammer.” His organization contended that the bill would “make doing business in Florida virtually impossible’’ and that handing over additional control to lawmakers to approve state contracts would bog down and impede attempts by the state to move quickly on purchasing services.
The Department of Management Services, which oversees contracts and reports to Crist, also warned in an analysis that the legislation could “unintentionally add significant costs and delays” to the contracting process.
Crist on Wednesday did sign two separate pieces of legislation also pushed by Alexander. One would require the state to create a database of all real estate holdings and immediately sell off several buildings in downtown Tallahassee. Another bill would call for the creation of the “Transparency Florida” website that would make it easier for citizens and legislators to track state spending included in the state budget.
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