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| First Group Headquarters, Cincinnati, Ohio |
First Transit has a management contract with the City of Brownsville worth $225,000 per year to manage Brownsville Metro. There are only two management employees running Brownsville Metro, Executive Director Norma Zamora and Assistant Director Andrew Munoz. So, for example, if Zamora gets paid $60,000 per year and Munoz $40,000, for a total of $100,000 per year, First Transit nets $125,000 per year on the management contract. These are hypotheticals, of course.
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| Brownsville Metro Executive Director, Norma Zamora |
This is how First Transit makes its money with the City of Brownsville, by supplying two managers, Zamora and Munoz, but charging the city substantially more than those two earn as salaries in the management contract. It costs the city about double, but they don't have to deal with hiring, background checking, etc. They just pay First Transit for management services, using taxpayer dollars.
First Transit also has the much more lucrative maintenance contract for Brownsville Metro to the tune of $1,400,000 annually. A lot of fat(profit) is built into this bloated contract, that includes $786,000 for labor, $300,000 for parts, $102,800 for administrative costs and another $102,000 for a corporate fee. Obviously, administrative fees and corporate fees are simply profit for First Transit.
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| Finance Director Lupe Granado |
To correct some of these maintenance issues, James Campbell was named Supervisor of Mechanics 4/1/2014. Campbell quickly noticed that First Transit's contract with the City of Brownsville called for 8 full-time mechanics, but the First Transit shop was operating with only 6. Remember the $786,000 "labor costs" specified in the contract. If you divide $786,000 by 8, it comes to $98,250 per mechanic, likely more than double what First Transit pays its bus mechanics, even after adding 15% for benefits. All of that extra was pure profit for First Transit, but by shorting the City of Brownsville two mechanics, it was something else-theft. No one knows or is saying how long the garage operated with 2 mechanics less than paid for by the taxpayers. First Transit held the contract for at least 4 years. 4 X 2 X $98,250=$786,000. Interest and penalties could triple that.
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| City Manager Charlie Cabler |
Actually, since Charlie Cabler, Pete Gonzalez, Ruth Azuna and Lupe Granado know about this theft by First Transit, why would the City of Brownsville have any contracts with a company that stole from Brownsville taxpayers?
Had a private company discovered this obvious theft, not only would they terminate the contract, criminal charges would likely be pursued against the contracted firm. Any company officials, found to have knowledge of the theft, but not acting on it, would also be terminated.
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Does anyone even care about protecting Brownsville taxpayer assets or monies?
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You may have left out the cost they have to deduct for kickbacks to city officials in order to get such a lucrative deal.
ReplyDeleteGreat work, sir!
ReplyDeleteSince we lack a qualified and trained city manager and city management staff....there is a tendency to "do it the way we always did" and there is no incentive or interest by the city to learn about the transportation system. The city has contracted the service out for years and no one on the city commission has a clue about bus services (bike services and bike trails yes, but not "real" transport issues) and don't want to learn.
ReplyDeleteThus, it is easy to cheat the city. In the absence of leadership and city planning experience it is easy for people to "cheat" the city and misuse our tax dollars. We must remember that most of the transit is federally funded.....so, the city benefits from the funds, but take them for granted. We are an entitlements city full of citizens who are on welfare. Neither is likely to stir the pot for fear of losing benefits.
As long as everybody in the COB (read well "compensated") is happy, who cares about the common citizen.
ReplyDeleteis there ANYTHING we concerned citizens CAN DO?
ReplyDeleteAs citizens, there are several things we can do to support this call to action.
DeleteFirst, we can inform ourselves about the issue by reading and sharing articles like this one with our family, friends, and social networks. We can also attend city council meetings and ask questions about the management and maintenance of the public transportation system in our city.
Second, we can hold our elected officials accountable by writing letters, making phone calls, or sending emails to express our concerns and demand action. We can also organize and participate in protests and rallies to draw attention to the issue and pressure officials to act.
Third, we can support local organizations that are working to improve public transportation in our city. This could include volunteering, donating, or participating in advocacy campaigns.
Ultimately, it is up to us as citizens to demand transparency, accountability, and effective management of public resources, including our public transportation system.