Just the facts please
Dear friends,
I’m not very good at humor, but try this one.
Riddle: How many addresses are served by trash collection contracts in the City of New Orleans?
Answer: Ask five more times.
Sorry. It’s not really very funny, is it?
No doubt you’ve already heard tragi-comic story about the breakdown in civility in City Council chambers today when Councilwoman Stacy Head accused Sanitation Director Veronica White of repeatedly withholding information.
How much time must City Council members waste, in the service of their constituents, looking for basic information required to ensure that tax dollars are being spent wisely? As council members diligently comb through the 2009 budget looking for $25 million in savings, basic performance metrics should be at their fingertips to evaluate where program cuts might have the least impact on the city’s well being.
When D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty couldn’t obtain even the most rudimentary measures of how well his policies were being translated into services, he commenced a complete overhaul of record systems, with the goal of providing access to records of virtually every department in his administration on the CapStat Web site. He discovered that transparency wasn’t just an issue which enhances public confidence, but it also produces greater accord between departments which rely upon shared information, and it fosters the attainment of excellence in service to the public.
An open records policy is critical, especially when answers to basic questions seems to be a problem.
A week has now passed since I asked Mayor Nagin and NOPD Superintendent Warren Riley to respond to my discovery that the city GIS crime-mapping Web site has been under-reporting crime. I have received no reply. One might naturally assume that the mayor and police chief consider it important to ensure that members of the community are made aware of potential threats to their safety. Here is a vital area in which public access to records may mean the difference between life and death.
It isn’t too late for Ray Nagin to responsibly answer the crisis in confidence in his administration by following Mayor Fenty’s lead.
NOLAStat is a simple idea which could revolutionize City Hall, and put an end to squabbles about access to records, while increasing the speed and efficiency of government.
NOLAStat is not another cash-cow for perennial contractors to build expensive Web sites. Instead, NOLAStat is a process, requiring no more than a couple of competent programmers, who will connect the records found in every city department, and publish them in live RSS feeds on the city’s Web site.
Later, Mayor Nagin should use those published records to compile department analysis reports, which would be used in weekly, videotaped, performance evaluation meetings. The resulting analyses and videotaped meetings should be posted on the NOLAStat Web site.
The best thing about NOLAStat is that it has a proven model of success to follow in the D.C. CapStat program.
When Councilwoman Head charged that her behavior was grounds for discharge, Ms. White retorted, “You do what you have to do.”
Sure. Let’s do what we have to do for a better city. Let’s end these petty feuds over access to records, and put a system in place that elevates the debate to a discussion about facts.
Oh — the number of addresses served by trash collection contracts? 106,500 — a number which Councilwoman Head believes is too high.
Let’s restore some sanity to City Hall by promoting an open records policy. Please support the implementation of a NOLAStat program for the City of New Orleans.
Regards,
Brian Denzer
Founder/Executive Director
Citizen Crime Watch
http://citizencrimewatch.org
November 17th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
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