Maryland families are being squeezed between Gov. Martin O’Malley‘s record tax hikes and spiraling costs for essentials like food, electricity and gas, so he and the General Assembly should stop demanding that we tighten our belts another notch and start pulling harder – a lot harder – on their own. And forget that “we can only cut $200 million” dodge because a cursory look at Department of Legislative Services (DLS) audits and news reports point to millions more that can be cut without impairing essential services.
Here’s just a few examples:
» An audit determined that at least 22 employees of the state Department ofTransportation accessed porn on state computers on a regular basis. Some employees accessed explicit material as often as 2,200 times per week. When did they work? Using the average salary of $49.920 for state employees, taxpayers could save $1.1 million by eliminating those positions.
» An audit found that the Family Investment Administration gave assistance to 52,000 people who did not have valid Social Security numbers in 2006. The Department of Human Resources, which oversees FIA, since verified that 37,000 of those people do have real Social Security numbers, but that still leaves 15,000 people who could have been receiving over $3,000 each per year in cash and food stamps who should not have been eligible, or possibly as much as $45 million. Norris West, spokesman for DHR, said eight death match cases have been referred to the Inspector General with a potential loss of about $10,000. Regardless of the final amount, poor oversight at that time opened the door to widespread abuse of the system.
» An audit found that the Maryland Department of the Environment concealed $912,000 saved on a contract – so that it could spend the money on other projects. It also found that the department did not reevaluate those receiving exemptions from paying into the Bay Restoration Fund, potentially forfeiting thousands of dollars.
» An audit found $1.8 million in undocumented spending – i.e. they can’t explain where it went – by the Department of Veterans Affairs. How much more is spent without documentation by other state government departments?
» What about the nearly $700 million in sensible cuts suggested by the Maryland Chamber of Commerce. Go to examiner.com to download the Chamber’s list.
If O’Malley and the legislators do not want to listen to us or to their constituents, they should at least trust their own auditors. Every ignored DLS audit is proof that state leaders mean to keep living in the opulent style to which they’ve become accustomed, no matter how much it costs the rest of us. It’s past time for an attitude adjustment in Annapolis.
