Keeping a lid on the cost of cost overruns
Work in Progress by Ivan Morgan
I apologize to regular readers because I am being a bit of a broken record recently, but I can’t seem to let some things go.
The Canadian Taxpayers Association (CTA) recently issued a press release about the failure of the provincial government to provide basic information on cost overruns on paving contracts in the province.
Government came back saying not only do they not track that information, but it would also cost the CTA $7,000 for government to collect that data, and it will take a year to gather.
They don’t track cost overruns?
As I have noted in the past, this paper is full of stories where municipal councillors argue over contracts for services, watching every penny of your municipal tax dollars. Cost overruns happen and they are a serious business. Don’t take my word for it, read about it in this paper. Many of these councillors do it on a volunteer basis. Unpaid.
The provincial government, on the other hand, has many well-paid folk who could ensure this work gets done. Except it seems they don’t.
My guess is the CTA wasn’t fishing. I suspect they were tipped off about problems with cost overruns on paving jobs. They filed an access to information request and government has come back throwing sand in their eyes.
The provincial Department of Transportation and Infrastructure has a small division called Road Construction. The budget says they plan to spend $187,829,000 this year, with a salary budget of $7.4 million. Some of this will be paving.
Simple common sense says they need to keep track of the cost, including overruns. It’s basic accounting. It’s not like they are doing the actual paving. They are just paying the bills.
Simple political sense says cost overruns are bad and best kept secret. Who’s going to rat – the folks getting the extra money? Is that what this is?
What’s the truth? Thanks to government we don’t know. Is government hiding something? Maybe they are just wildly incompetent (not the workers – the people in charge). Maybe there are never cost overruns, and so government is not wasting our money tracking them. Who knows?
Maybe the Auditor General needs to get involved (like she’s not busy enough!)
I am not some wingnut demanding people be fired and some such nonsense. I am the wingnut who is watching our provincial government becoming less and less accountable, more reliant on foolish publicity stunts (the Premier getting his picture taken with Nickelback comes to mind) and less focussed on the boring, mucky business of actually running things. I see a generation of politicians who think they can stay in power through slogans, celebrity and staged photo ops. Maybe they are right?
Here’s the broken record part: We all deserve to know what is being done with our money.
I worked in the Confederation Building for 12 years. Government departments are full of capable, hard-working people. What’s missing is leadership.
Before you agree, note I am referring to you and me. Ultimately you and I are in charge. We are the ones who keep electing these people. They don’t set the standards – we do.
The upcoming months are going to be full of elections. Try and find candidates who know what they are doing and will be capable of managing our money. All political parties will tell you they are the best, the most competent, the most righteous, and only they are on your side. See past that.
All three parties will tell you how good they have been to you. What they have given you. What they will give you in the future. See past that.
Reminds me of a great quote I came across recently: Government aid is the system of making money taken from the people look like a gift when it’s handed back.
Ivan Morgan can be reached at ivan.morgan@gmail.com