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| Christie looks to privatize motor vehicle inspections, other services |
| 2010-07-10 |
| New Jersey would close its centralized car inspection lanes and motorists would pay for their own emissions tests under a sweeping set of recommendations set to be released by the Christie administration today. State parks, psychiatric hospitals and even turnpike toll booths could also be run by private operators, according to the 57-page report on privatization obtained by The Star-Ledger. Preschool classrooms would no longer be built at public expense, state employees would pay for parking and private vendors would dish out food, deliver health care and run education programs behind prison walls. All told, the report says, New Jersey could save at least $210 million a year by delivering an array of services through private hands. "The question has to be, 'Why do you continue to operate in a manner that's more costly and less effective?' rather than, 'Why change?' " said Richard Zimmer, the former Republican congressman who chaired the task force. It is unclear how many of the recommendations will be adopted by Governor Christie, who commissioned the report in March. Christie's spokesman declined comment Thursday. But the car inspection proposal is sure to stir up controversy in a state with a tortured history of privatizing emissions testing. The report says that beginning next July, "New Jersey should withdraw entirely from direct participation in the vehicle inspection process." Before then, the state would develop a plan to certify service stations and other shops "to make the transition seamless for motorists and assure that private inspection fees will be transparent and reasonable." The state would then sell the land where its facilities now operate. The proposal would require breaking the state's contract with Parsons Corp., which is two years into a five-year, $276 million deal to do emissions and mechanical inspections. The mechanical inspections were already phased out under the budget that went into effect July 1. The state conducts more than 1.94 million initial inspections a year and pays for all of them. Drivers pay only if they fail the inspections and have to make repairs. Zimmer pointed out that motorists are already paying for the system through their tax dollars. Critics said Christie is returning to dangerous territory after Parsons' early years of managing the inspection program were steeped in controversy. When the inspection network was opened in December 1999, it was plagued by computer malfunctions and frozen equipment that left drivers fuming in lines four hours long. Hetty Rosenstein, New Jersey director of the Communications Workers of America state workers union, said the plans outlined in the report would create "bad service" and "less safety" while failing to save the state money. But Zimmer stressed "stringent" controls will be put in place. Despite past predictions that up to 2,000 public employees could lose their jobs to privatization, the report does not specify the number of layoffs to come. But its impact could be felt from parks -- where private recreation firms would run concessions, operate facilities and perhaps collect a fee -- to preschools. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #4 The state of Colorado ran private emissions testing for fifteen years without a problem. The test initially cost $15, was raised to $25 four years ago. All testing equipment had to pass a state licensing inspection, and anyone failing a test was guaranteed a free re-test. ANY service station and most other auto repair shops were allowed to conduct emissions testing, as long as their equipment passed state standards. The program has been so successful that emissions in the state have dropped below where emission controls are needed, and the testing has been suspended until it's needed again. As with anything else, if you're not an educated consumer, you can get ripped off. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2010-07-10 17:14 |
| #3 Test Only works fairly well in CA (one of the few things...) but you also need to have State undercover "shoppers" periodically visit to see if what's caught is correct |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-07-10 16:59 |
| #2 Jim, The muffler bearing trick must be a classic, because I remember my dad telling me 50 years ago about a woman at his shop who was subjected to the muffler bearing trick. There is a way to privatize the inspections without as much chance for fraud: set up places that ONLY do inspections. They may replace taillights or wiper blades, but that is it. They do no major mechanical work. North Carolina uses that approach and it seems to work pretty well. |
| Posted by: Rambler in Virginia 2010-07-10 16:52 |
| #1 As a Retired Master Mechanic I have past experience with "Privitizing Inspections" I have talked with friends/Mechanics from other states where the Inspections were done by dealerships and Private Gaages. Almost all said the system GUARANTEED A PROFIT because (Said under your breath If we don't pass them they don't drive,) Much abuse, (Ma'am you need a new set of Mufler Bearings before we can pass you, that'll be 399.99, PLUS the "Inspection fee (And another inspection FEE when the new Bearings are installed to be sure the problem's corrected) By the way, for all you Non-Mechanics out there there's no such thing as a "Muffler Bearing". Or "Halogen Headlight fluid" ETC. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2010-07-10 12:45 |