Sunday, May 13, 2007
My Inspector Obsession
A better question than why I'm so obsessed with the city's electrical inspectors might be why more people aren't. Not only is the shortage of electrical inspectors a major drag on the city's recovery and a factor in what could be a major safety concern for years to come, the issue illustrates much of what is wrong with the current administration.
For one thing, it shows how little effort the city makes toward putting its limited resources where they can do most good. In December 2005, when the focus of this blog first changed from the Bush administration to the Nagin administration, nobody in city government even felt the need to declare it as a operating principle. Now Nagin claims that putting the city's limited money where it will do the most good is one the administration's main governing principles, but he also makes that claim about transparency. To be fair, the city did give electrical inspectors raises beyond the across-the-board raises and greater raises could throw the entire city pay structure out-of-whack, but the city consider two year bonuses to help clear the backlog. It be easy enough to find the money to give bonuses to either eight or ten (depending on which month's statement you believe) employees without breaking the budget, or it would have been.
As importantly, the issue illustrates just how cowed, or lazy, or amnesia-stricken the local press corps can be when it comes to covering the Nagin administration. Not only has the city come up with an entirely new set of claims about the number of inspectors before and after Katrina (as the previous post pointed out), the WWL report should raise questions about administration claims that no inspectors were lost to layoffs. At the very least, it makes me wonder whether any were asked to stay in one of the city's cruise ship berths -- I know for a fact that at least a few non-emergency personnel were made that offer.
Finally, it shows that the mayor continues to think that "FEMA will pay for it," no matter how dubious the bills he submits. He refuses to learn. Or doesn't care what kind of debts he leaves the city.
For one thing, it shows how little effort the city makes toward putting its limited resources where they can do most good. In December 2005, when the focus of this blog first changed from the Bush administration to the Nagin administration, nobody in city government even felt the need to declare it as a operating principle. Now Nagin claims that putting the city's limited money where it will do the most good is one the administration's main governing principles, but he also makes that claim about transparency. To be fair, the city did give electrical inspectors raises beyond the across-the-board raises and greater raises could throw the entire city pay structure out-of-whack, but the city consider two year bonuses to help clear the backlog. It be easy enough to find the money to give bonuses to either eight or ten (depending on which month's statement you believe) employees without breaking the budget, or it would have been.
As importantly, the issue illustrates just how cowed, or lazy, or amnesia-stricken the local press corps can be when it comes to covering the Nagin administration. Not only has the city come up with an entirely new set of claims about the number of inspectors before and after Katrina (as the previous post pointed out), the WWL report should raise questions about administration claims that no inspectors were lost to layoffs. At the very least, it makes me wonder whether any were asked to stay in one of the city's cruise ship berths -- I know for a fact that at least a few non-emergency personnel were made that offer.
Finally, it shows that the mayor continues to think that "FEMA will pay for it," no matter how dubious the bills he submits. He refuses to learn. Or doesn't care what kind of debts he leaves the city.
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I have a bit of related info you might be interested in but I don't see an email address on your profile.
It's down at the bottom of the links. I guess I should out it in the profile; when I first started this blog, I had only a few links and it was pretty noticeable. I see that it's not as apparent now. Thanks for asking.
It's down at the bottom of the links. I guess I should out it in the profile; when I first started this blog, I had only a few links and it was pretty noticeable. I see that it's not as apparent now. Thanks for asking.
I suggest we transfer the $600,000 from the Mayors PR operation to the Department of Safety and Permits, so they can pay inspector the $50K or $60K it might take to hire qualified inspectors. We currently seem to have no shortage of electricians.
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