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 Taxpayers should not be taken on this ferry ride
by Tom Campbell
July 8, 2010
We applaud Governor Perdue’s efforts to clean up the State Highway Patrol. While the Governor is in a clean-up mode she should expand her efforts to the Ferry Division of the Department of Transportation.
Insiders in state government have long known that the Department of Motor Vehicles and the ferry division are dumping groups for political appointees. More than one effort has been made to clean up DMV and some progress has been being made, but not so at the ferry division, largely because this agency has at least one high-ranking patron who prevents cleanup and protects its budgets. While other agencies of state government have felt the budget axe this year’s ferry division budget was increased from 32.2 million to 43.5 million dollars, a whopping 35 percent increase.
North Carolina has the second largest ferry system in the nation, with seven ferry routes that transport over 2.5 million people per year on more than 20 ferries. Most of those routes are free but some trips of the same duration require tolls be paid. It is evident some plan needs to be developed to determine whether all trips should be free, all have tolls or how tolls will be assessed
DOT appeared ready to clean up ferries, hiring Harold “Buddy” Finch, a 58 year old recently retired Coast Guard officer with a reputation for no nonsense management. Finch was told to develop a business plan for the division within 60 days, a desirable but difficult task for an agency with 500 employees, a 32 million dollar budget and known disorganization.
He was abruptly fired on June 25th, less than 60 days after starting work, after reporting to leaders within DOT that the division had no detailed budget, was spending more than ten percent of its budget on overtime compensation, was loaded with nepotism, failed to provide proper oversight on outside contractors and spent money excessively.
Finch reported that one employee reported 113 hours of overtime in a four week period and that same employee’s husband worked at the same location, even though his job description listed his work site elsewhere, clearly a violation of rules. That same employee was allowed to approve her own time sheet and that of her husband, while also securing temporary employment for her sister. Finch was concerned that a half million dollar contract for dredging was poorly managed and had exceeded its budget by almost half a million dollars. And there was improper spending on credit card purchases. No wonder Finch didn’t develop a business plan. Instead of applauding his work Finch was fired.
DOT officials claim his firing came as a result of his failure to produce the business plan and personality conflicts within the staff. Outsiders speculate Finch threatened to break up cozy fiefdoms and unrestricted spending within the agency, resulting in the former ferry division head as well as political leadership demanding his termination.
This has gone on long enough. In our current budget crisis North Carolina cannot tolerate extravagant or wasteful spending. Leaders cannot justify straining to save teaching jobs and providing other urgently needed services while tolerating badly mismanaged agencies. Governor Perdue must immediately step in and clean house. Taxpayers should not be taken on this ferry ride.
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