An article today in the online Exception Magazine, by Chris Cinquemani, points out that Auburn Senator Deb Simpson has worked hard to paint herself as a supporter of government transparency, a label that Cinquemani says does not accurately describe the Senator.
Chris Cinquemani, who is the public relations director for Maine Leads
(a nonpartisan, not-for-profit citizen group committed to lower taxes
and government transparency in Maine) says that "Removing names from public salaries tramples principles of transparency." His column in today's Sun-Journal goes on to say that, "LD 1353 is the greatest threat to government transparency Maine has
ever seen. Sen. Marrache and the other sponsors appear as if they want
to turn our government into a secret society."
From:owner-generic@mseaseiu.org
[mailto:owner-generic@mseaseiu.org] On Behalf Of MSEA-SEIU BLAST E-Mail
Server Sent: Wednesday, April 15, 2009 4:02 PM To:genericemailaddress Subject: Action Alert! Thank Senator Marrache for Standing Up for State
Workers and Retirees!
Action Alert!
Thank Senator Marrache for Standing Up for State Workers
and Retirees!
Dear MSEA-SEIU Member,
Last year, the MaineHeritagePolicyCenter launched a website
listing the names and pay of all state employees, retirees, and
contractors. While we all recognize that pay information should be
public, members were outraged that their names were published on the
internet.
Maine Senate Assistant Majority Leader Lisa Marrache of Waterville offered to
sponsor a bill to protect names from disclosure, and has been a passionate
advocate for this cause. She is under attack today for her courageous stand on
this issue, and we need to back her up. We need to stand up for our
friends and allies.
If you're tired of the attacks on state workers, and tired
of having your name and pay on the internet, please do the following:
1)Call or write Senator Marrache and thank her for her support. Leave a
message for her at 1-800-423-6900 or 287-1515. Send her a note at: http://www.mainesenate.org/marrache/email.htm
2)Call or email the members of the Judiciary Committee and tell them to
support LD 1353, "An Act Regarding Salary Information for Public Employees."
3)Join us for the hearing on the bill, Thursday, April 30 at 1:00 pm before the
Judiciary Committee, State House Room 438.
As we move quickly toward an April 30th public hearing on LD 1353, a bill that would hide public employees names as it related to their tax-payer funded salaries, local media continues to blast the bill, proposed by Assistant Senate Leader Lisa Marrache (D) of Waterville.
The Bangor Daily News says the bill is "blocking the sunhine" that MaineOpenGov.org has provided for taxpayers, and let's face it, we need all the sunshine we can get here in Maine.
Assistant Democrat Leader Lisa Marrache (D) - Waterville, responded directly today to several media stories about her proposed bill to hide names from public employees salary information.
Her opinon piece in the Kennebec Journal calls those who publish this public information "sleazy and voyeuristic' and goes on to say at the same time that she is, "a big proponent of transparency in government..."
She can say what she wants, but as the Brunswick Times says, "Marrache's legislation would put this state back into the dark ages,
with respect to Maine's Freedom of Access law... a misguided piece of legislation that deserves a quick death at the
committee level, with a unanimous 'ought not to pass' recommendation
stamped across the document."
Maybe the good Senator is familiar with the phrase, "actions speak louder than words"
LD 1353, "An Act Regarding Salary Information for Public
Employees," would censor the taxpayer-paid salaries of
some 90,000 Maine government, school and other public employees, trampling the
right of the public to review how their hard-earned tax dollars are spent by
local and state officials. Censoring the names of public employees opens
the door for massive taxpayer-paid bonuses, salary hikes and secret deals to
occur in the shadows, because this vital information would become inaccessible
to citizens and the media.
More news today surrounding the LD 1353 bill that would hide public employees salary information. This mornings editorial in the Kennebec Journal on LD 1353 points out that this bill to censor government employees salary information might be the result of a "you scratch our back we'll scratch yours" relationship between the Democrats in the Maine State Legislature and the public employees unions.
Elizabeth Mitchell (D) - Vassalboro, says that the website is an attempt to "harass and embarrass" government employees, while the bills sponsor, Lisa Marrache' (D) - Waterville, says that "No one is trying to make Maine the most secretive government in the country," even though no precedant for this type of legislation has been found.
This Lewiston Sun-Journal article outlines a bill introduced in the Maine State Legislature that is what the Sun-Journal calls...
"legislation to separate the names of state workers from their salaries,
for the purpose of public records. This bill is a direct result from
the policy center's new Web site, Maineopengov.org, which made this
information easily searchable."
According to MaineOpenGov.org data, there were 413 state
employees with more than $10,000 in overtime pay alone in 2007. The total
overtime paid to these employees was over $19,000,000 for 2007.
At least half a dozen of these workers earned more in
overtime than their total annual salary, with several employees earning more
than $7,000 above their annual salary in overtime pay.
The State of Maine should consider hiring some
additional workers to help fill this void. Judging by the amount of overtime pay
these employees are taking home, there are just not enough workers at these
positions to do everything that must be done.
Members of Maine's Appropriations and Financial Affairs
Committee are among the most powerful people in State government.This group of 13 individuals determines how
over $6 billion are spent by the State every two years.
This afternoon I used MaineOpenGov.org to look up members of the
Appropriations Committee.What I found
was a possible conflict of interest among two key members; Reps. Emily Cain
(D-Orono), who serves as the House Chair of the Committee, and John Martin
(D-Eagle Lake), who has served in the legislature for over 40 years.
According to MaineOpenGov.org data, both these politicians receive salaries
and benefits from the University of Maine system.In pay year 2007, Rep. Cain, Coordinator of
Advancement for U Maine, earned $29,994 in wages and benefits, while Rep.
Martin, Executive Assistant to the President at the University of Maine at Fort
Kent, earned a combined $71,867 in wages and benefits.
As members of the Appropriation Committee, these two play a
major role in taxpayer funding of higher education in Maine.In fiscal year 2008, higher education comprised
8.36 percent of the $6.2 billion general fund budget--the fourth largest state
expenditure.Yikes!
Should two individuals whose bread is buttered by the
University of Maine be in a position to direct over $518 million to higher
education; the very hand that feeds them?I don't think so either...
Our goal is
for the Maine Open Government Blog to become a statewide hub through which
Maine taxpayers can share, analyze and comment on the data they find on MaineOpenGov.org. This analysis and
perspective will add valuable insight and depth to the discussion about how our
State and Local governments spend taxpayer dollars.
Are you interested in submitting a post for the Maine
Open Government Blog? Please send an email to info@maineopengov.org to become a
registered blogger. A 25 dollar stipend will be awarded for each blog posted.
Your interest in contributing to a culture of
government transparency, and your continued participation on MaineOpenGov.Org is very important to informed public
debate of the vital issues facing Maine.
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