Posted on 03/21/2007 12:58:25 PM PDT by bd476
Caltrans Cloaks Millions in Deals
Calif. Transportation Agency Labels Hundreds of Contracts `confidential'
By MICHAEL R. BLOOD Associated Press Writer
The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES Mar 21, 2007 (AP) - The California Transportation Department shielded from public view details of at least 290 contracts worth more than $13 million, though there is no record the agency was given authority to strike the information from state records, an Associated Press investigation has found.
The contracts labeled "confidential" and in many cases awarded without competitive bidding went out between 2002 and 2006 and ranged from $10,000 to more than $1 million. They authorized payments of up to $7,000 per day to experts in various fields for their testimony or legal opinions.
The Department of General Services, which has authority over a huge tracking system of state contracts, requires agencies to seek permission before masking information in the records as confidential.
General Services said it received a request from the Transportation Department several years ago to withhold details of contracts tied to ongoing litigation. Such exemptions are permissible, but "we have not been able to locate any documents ... that prove conclusively that specific permission was granted," spokesman Bill Branch said in a statement.
The agency was unaware Caltrans listed confidential contracts in its records until notified by AP, Branch said. However, after reviewing the issue, he said it was "acceptable" for Caltrans to place the contracts off limits because they dealt with legal issues typically exempted from disclosure.
Caltrans said it was complying with all rules regarding confidentiality.
"The department has not received any indication from DGS that its current practices related to expert witness contracts are contrary to policy," spokesman Matt Rocco said in an e-mail.
Robert Stern, president of the nonpartisan Center for Governmental Studies and a former general counsel at the California Fair Political Practices Commission, said the situation raises questions about who is watching over billions in taxpayer dollars.
"Who is minding the store? Why aren't they paying attention this?" Stern asked. "If nobody is watching, people have an incentive to pay more and could be fleecing the taxpayers."
An AP investigation in January found scores of California Justice Department contracts, many of them no-bid, were erroneously labeled "confidential" in computerized state records and hidden from public view.
The department said that the omissions were mistakes by staff members, and that there was no attempt to intentionally hide spending or protect favored contractors from public scrutiny. This week it issued a new policy for employees to follow.
At AP's request, Caltrans released 45 of the confidential contracts worth as much as $1.5 million. All were for experts hired for court testimony or legal advice in areas such as property appraisal and pediatric neurology.
In one case, the state was billed $2,200 by a former truck driver for 11 hours of travel time for a flight from Sacramento to Quincy, Ill. A toxicologist working at $500 an hour had state contracts valued at up to $74,000.
Caltrans officials said there is a legitimate need to cloak the purpose of the taxpayer-funded contracts and the identity of companies or individuals that received the money because they are linked to ongoing litigation and disclosure could jeopardize those cases.
The confidential expenses were listed in the state's main computer storehouse for tracking contracts. The database was created several years ago, in part to provide an open window into how the state spends money.
In January, General Services said the state Justice Department was the only agency labeling certain contracts confidential. However, when shown AP's findings, Branch acknowledged Caltrans had been doing it as well.
In an e-mail, Branch said that in response to AP's queries, the agency has done a more thorough search and "we can now assure you that these are the only two departments that have listed the names of vendors as `confidential' in some cases."
Associated Press reporters Bob Porterfield in San Francisco and Aaron C. Davis in Sacramento contributed to this report.
It's amazing the relatively tiny amounts the media can get worked up about, when the Democrats in the Legislature waste well over 13 million taxpayer dollars every day on crackpot social spending schemes. The school budget alone is 3,000 times that amount.
Good point.
That IS traffic in California.
405 south, just past Century Blvd. Note the California license plates.
LOL, while it seems that way, especially when you're in a hurry to get to LAX, this is the 405 Southbound at the Century Blvd. off-ramp.
![](http://i3.tinypic.com/35nanpw.jpg")
That's the Downtown L.A. District Office (I go there once a week...)
I don't recall seeing it. Do you know how long ago it was built?
Not very long ago, I believe (I have been a CT consultant only for the last 8 months.) It's at 100 S Main St, a short walk from the New Otami Hotel.
Sounds like fun.
The downtown area is supposed to be improving, but it's still not one of my favorite places in town. The last time I had to drive downtown, parking was $18.
I avoid going there as much as I can...as a consultant, I have to get a parking reservation just to park in the visitors' parking in that building.
Otherwise, I get to pay $6 parking for the privilege of letting some undocumented Mexicans "watch" my vehicle.
Wow! California Marxist bureaucrats lie, cheat and steal. I would never have imagined that.
Maybe California citizens will wake up and realize that they're living in a soviet socialist dictatorship. No, that would take some modicum of awareness and intelligence.
Perhaps you might want to pick yourself up a barrel full of manners, awareness and intelligence because the owner of the website you are writing on happens to reside in California, as do many other good conservatives.
A reservation? No thanks, then. I'd rather go to Century City.
lolz
Fortunately, given the choice, I stay in Ontario and areas East thereof.
"Perhaps you might want to pick yourself up a barrel full of manners, awareness and intelligence because the owner of the website you are writing on happens to reside in California, as do many other good conservatives."
Don't be obtuse, bd476, come out and write what you're trying to say. Manners are not relevant to stating facts. The results of Prop 90 convinced me beyond a doubt that the majority of Californians haven't a clue what system of government they're living under.
Even the good citizens in Oregon "got it" by passing Measure 37 in 2004.
The problem California has is not enough "good conservatives."
"Not enough 'good conservatives' is better than the broad brush swipe you took at all Californians.
or
Evidently there are stupid people everywhere.
LOL, evidently. And Michael Moore is from Michigan, which is quite a few miles distance from California.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.