Del-Tech Has the Joint Finance Committee Wired. Here’s How…
“DTCC Grunt”, over at the Delawareonline board, posted the following from Delaware Technical & Community College President Orlando J. George, Jr.:
I am pleased to share with you that on Tuesday, June 2, the Board of Trustees unanimously passed the Employee Compensation Resolution, giving them the flexibility to preserve College employee salaries at existing levels while making budget cuts required by the State. As I outlined in my message last week, this is the first of five approvals we will need to be successful. We now await a vote from the Joint Finance Committee. As always, I will keep you posted.
Lonnie George
Lonnie George knows that he has nothing to fear from the Joint Finance Committee. Not when two Del-Tech employees, whose salaries (and employment) could adversely be impacted if they don’t go along, and who owe their hefty second paychecks to the hefty college President, sit on the Joint Finance Committee.
And not when Lonnie’s own daughter, whose district was created by current Del-Tech pensioner and current Speaker of the House Bob Gilligan, sits on the same committee.
That’s three out of the 12 JFC members, including the only two legislators who are also current DTCC employees.
And, if all else fails, there’s always the Big Head Committee, where Speaker Gilligan is front and center.
To her credit, Melanie George Marshall has reportedly stated that she will not vote on the Del-Tech appropriations b/c of perceived conflicts-of-interest. However, due to the closed-door nature of the JFC proceedings up until now, it is impossible to gauge what role she or the other DTCC legislators have already played in crafting Del-Tech’s budget. Plus, as former JFC member Lonnie George and purported grocery store beer/wine sales opponent Gerald Hocker well know, it doesn’t matter if one member abstains from voting as long as the votes for passage have already been lined up.
Welcome to the Delaware Way.
According to the State of Delaware legislative website, JFC members Senator Margaret Rose Henry and Representative John Mitchell both have cushy jobs at Del-Tech.
Henry is the Assistant Dean of Student Services at Del-Tech, according to her biography. She has served in a series of jobs in the public and not-for-profit sectors during her years in the General Assembly, all of which have depended on the General Assembly for some of their funding. Getting a job at Del-Tech is her golden, and ‘bulo means ‘golden’, parachute.
Mitchell, a retired New Castle County cop, is the Chief of Public Safety at Del-Tech, according to his biography. Mitchell was appointed to the JFC by Del-Tech pensioner and long-time employee Bob Gilligan, who also moonlights as Speaker of the House. This despite the fact that Mitchell is just beginning his second term in the House. Seniority generally plays a role in appointments to powerful committees like JFC, but not in this case.
Neither Henry nor Mitchell have publicly stated what role they have played, or will or will not play, in considering or furthering DTCC’s budget requests. Someone should ask them.
Long-time House watchers (and readers of Cris Barrish’s excellent article) also know that Lonnie George and Bob Gilligan served as the House Democratic leadership team until George got his long-sought college presidency. Gilligan replaced George in leadership with Rep. John Van Sant, who also enjoyed a second (third? State police, legislator, and…) career in security at Del-Tech. Anyone seeing a pattern here?
As for Melanie George Marshall, then-Minority Leader Gilligan had already hired her as staff attorney to the House Democratic Caucus, and she was serving in that capacity in 2002, when the House leaders cut their deal on reapportionment, a deal that enabled Wayne Smith to gerrymander several districts in Brandywine Hundred, enabled him to add more Kent/Sussex and Republican districts at the expense of New Castle County (by grouping the smallest allowable number of residents in the downstate districts while grouping the largest allowable number of residents in the New Castle County districts). In exchange, Melanie George Marshall got her district. And at least two Democratic legislators, Rick DiLiberto and Dave Brady, got screwed. Now, Bob Gilligan has appointed her to the Joint Finance Committee.
In other words, the current Speaker of the House has consistently placed the well-being of his former employer ahead of his party’s own fortunes in the Delaware State House of Representatives. Thanks to this kind of deal-making, the Democrats languished in the basement of Legislative Hall for 6 more years than necessary while Republican JFC member Dave Ennis found gainful employment at Del-Tech.
But why not? Del-Tech has been veryvery good to Bob Gilligan and a steady stream of legislators, although it’s been even better to Lonnie George.
Now, if only his Caucus would take notice…or care.
Pretty ‘effing good set up.
From a budget perspective I am struck by this…
I am pleased to share with you that on Tuesday, June 2, the Board of Trustees unanimously passed the Employee Compensation Resolution, giving them the flexibility to preserve College employee salaries at existing levels while making budget cuts required by the State.
You have to wonder what Lonnie can cut instead of salaries that would get them to the required levels.
Really, I hope the state employees are following all this money getting thrown around. If I was getting an 8% pay cut I’d be pretty darn angry right now.
…while Republican JFC member Dave Ennis found gainful employment at Del-Tech.
I thought he was in the insurance field. Am I wrong, or did that change? I know he unsuccessfully ran for Ins Comm, but then I thought he got employment in the industry.
If I was getting an 8% pay cut I’d be pretty darn angry right now.
I hope the light bulb begins to go off over their heads.
If Markell’s 8% cut succeeds in motivating state employees to ferret out waste and corruption throughout the system, it will be the smartest move ever.
You have to wonder what Lonnie can cut instead of salaries that would get them to the required levels.
Tuition or some everyone-must-sign-this-form fee increase, just sit and watch.
Smitty, ‘bulo doesn’t think that Dave ever actually worked in the insurance field, although he could be wrong. He knows that Dave once worked for the Blood Bank of Delaware.
He went to work at Del-Tech a few years ago, ‘bulo doesn’t think in a very prominent position, and he is listed on the current faculty/staff roster for Del-Tech.
He went to work at Del-Tech a few years ago, ‘bulo doesn’t think in a very prominent position, and he is listed on the current faculty/staff roster for Del-Tech.
Unresearched-unvetted thought: maybe he’s an instructor…actually showing up and earning his pay. Not defending the guy, but wondering if something legit actually crept its way into this scenario.
Smitty’s also right about Ennis’ insurance ties. Cris Barrish wrote that Ennis was hired as a legislative lobbyist for Blue Cross/Blue Shield soon after his 2004 defeat in his run for Insurance Commissioner:
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070226/NEWS/702260345
Gee, wonder if he puts in the occasional good word on behalf of Del-Tech while he’s at it…
Smitty, ‘bulo’s point about Ennis and, for that matter about the other elected officials working for Del-Tech isn’t necessarily their competence, although Henry, Mitchell, and Ennis acquired their Del-Tech jobs AFTER they’d been elected. After all, it’s indeed possible that coincidentally, in all three cases, as well as with Van Sant, Gilligan et al., these legislators just happened to be the best qualified candidates for their jobs.
It’s the fact that they find their ways onto the money committees or into leadership where Del-Tech’s fiscal fate is decided.
anon (#4)
I’m not sure the pavlovian dogs in state government (no offense) can get from point “A” to point “C.” Otherwise it would be a good plan.
And BTW, that is from someone who wants to be on Jack’s side – but is having a hard time as long as he gives the brush off to Kowlako’s proposal.
Bulo, great post. Only one small error though. Mitchell is not a retired State Trooper. He retired from New Castle County Police. Just saying..
“If Markell’s 8% cut succeeds in motivating state employees to ferret out waste and corruption throughout the system, it will be the smartest move ever.”
That’s never been a problem. It’s not as if every state employee wastes money on purpose. Almost every state employee could give you ways that the state could save money. Until “The Delaware Way” is either abolished or changed, a lot of this good old boy (and girl) network will continue to waste money. I’ve continuously mentioned ways to save money (and have submitted them to Markell’s site) and there’s been no particular action taken on anything. Not sure taking 8% from me is going to make me look even further when no action has been taken on the following items I’ve submitted:
1) Immediately negotiate a 10 to 15% reduction from Verizon wireless for the State’s cell phones and blackberry plans. (even 5% would save quite a bit of money)
2) Abolish all personal printers in the state (the toner costs are astronomical on these smaller printers). Quite a few agencies have copiers that can be used as networked printers and the toner is part of the lease.
3) In multi-agency buildings, consolidate copiers. (AND THIS IS NOT EVEN DONE WHEN ONLY 3 PEOPLE WORK IN A PARTICULAR BLD.
This doesn’t include the wasteful positions that are throughout state government
Anon. is correct. Larry Mitchell is a retired NCC Police Sergeant:
http://www.votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=66234
‘Bulo has made the correction to the story.
I can’t speak to the other ones, but this is a no brainer:
2) Abolish all personal printers in the state (the toner costs are astronomical on these smaller printers). Quite a few agencies have copiers that can be used as networked printers and the toner is part of the lease.
To Mark’s larger point – If Markell’s request for ideas was just bullshit PR coverage for doing what he planned on doing all along anyway, then I will have to admit that I misjudged him as a manager.
Jason, I think a less cynical view 🙂 (and not one I’m feeling right now) is that Markell has received a lot of these suggestions, and is still in the process of weeding through them. I just received an acknowledgment email last week on suggestions I had put on the website in the middle of January.
The argument for personal printers would be that there are often private things that need to be printed (think salary information and other personnel issues), thus making it a necessity for some managers.
I cannot tell you how many printers that would be, but it is conceivable that you could still save money if you limited the personal printers to only those managers.
“The argument for personal printers would be that there are often private things that need to be printed (think salary information and other personnel issues), thus making it a necessity for some managers.”
Maybe, but most Copier/Printers have what they call “private printing” that allows the print not to start until you get to the copier. You enter your password and then your print jobs print. My office is quite a ways from the copier and I have my printer default to the copier/Store mode which works the same way. With the private print and/or the mailbox print function, there’s very few business reasons for me to continue to buy toner….but I still do 🙂