The plan by the House Republicans would mandate contracts for the offices be given to nonprofit organizations or local municipalities; that salaries for employees of such offices would be capped at $100,000 a year; and that the state auditor would be given the authority to audit the offices.
While Silvey and his Republican colleagues should be given high marks for daring to defy Governor Matt Blunt and his Department of Revenue director Trish Vincent, who insist things are going swimmingly with the license fee offices, it should be mentioned that State Senate candidate Doug Harpool, D-Springfield, has made reform of the license fee offices one of the hallmarks of his campaign. I received the following news release from Harpool this morning:
Missouri Senate candidate Doug Harpool today called on lawmakers to join him in the battle against political corruption within Missouri’s fee offices.
Non-profit agencies should be allowed to serve as fee agents in Missouri, Harpool said. "Priority in the award of fee agent contracts should be given to not-for-profit groups willing to designate school districts, public colleges and universities as beneficiaries of all net proceeds of the office," Harpool said.
Currently, Springfield’s three fee offices are managed by political insiders with close ties to Gov. Matt Blunt. A state audit revealed the local fee offices received almost $1 million a year in revenues.
That money should be used to help our public schools, Harpool said: "Money earned in operating fee agent offices should be returned to taxpayers in the form of services, and not used to line the pockets of the governor’s political supporters or relatives of the powerful elected officials."
Harpool’s fee office plan, first announced on May 22, 2006, is included in his comprehensive ethics proposal, the Return to Public Service Initiative.
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I should be posting more information on the Republican plan later today. It was scheduled to be announced at stops across the state, including one in Springfield.
This is pure BS. Why can't people be allowed to make a living as fee agents? It is a business. And, incidently, when did democrats become opposed to receiving fee office contracts?
ReplyDeleteIt is not a business it is a tax and fee collection process mandated by the state with guaranteed fees. The customer has no choice. The government mandates the fees which are identical in every office.
ReplyDeleteDemocrats have never used fee agents in the eleven large offices the Governor converted from state operated offices to fee offices as one of the first acts of his administration. The third party management contracts with absent owners are also a Republican invention.