Some good reporting spotted in Orlando

[The Backlash Cometh]

Something new with the Orlando Sentinel. They're reporting details! Here is an interesting sequence of articles, the first two are current, the third is older, but involves the same basic subject and person:

Orlando airport board applicants donated to Crist
April 8, 2008
Orlando lawyer Frank Kruppenb@cher, who is seeking an appointment to the board that runs Orlando International Airport, hosted a $10,000-a-person GOP fundraiser attended by Gov. Charlie Crist less than three weeks before submitting his application to Crist's office.

<snip>

Government watchdogs say the donations suggest that some candidates may be trying to buy an appointment.

<snip>

Political fundraising and appointments to the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority have long overlapped. Current board Chairman Jeff Fuqua, most recently appointed to the authority by Jeb Bush, was a top fundraiser for both the former governor and his brother President Bush. Fuqua also raised money for Crist's main primary opponent in the 2006 gubernatorial race and eventually gave money to Crist as well.

<snip>

The Governor's Office received Kr*ppenbacher's application 19 days after the <fundraising> event. But Kruppenb*cher said he never mentioned the possible appointment to Crist, who appeared at the fundraiser.


http://www.orlandosentinel.com/community/news/apopka/orl-airport0808apr08,0,195818.story

Audit finds serious financial problems in Orange schools construction program
State audit finds flaws in bidding, contractor fees
April 11, 2008

A new state audit found what state officials describe as serious financial problems within the Orange School District's multibillion-dollar construction program, ranging from questionable bidding practices to undocumented contractor fees.

<snip>

Frank Kruppenb*cher, the school district's attorney, acknowledged that some of the paperwork has been "sloppy," adding that the district has begun to shore up its operations in the department and would monitor the progress with its own audits later on.

In each of the bidding cases, he said, his legal staff advised him that Orange operated within the law. The school district, he added, would not knowingly engage in unethical or illegal contract practices.

<snip>

<Yet the audit concludes that> the District has circumvented the competitive procurement process required by law.

Kruppenb*cher said his legal staff and the auditors simply disagree over the law.

"Our interpretation is that everything is acceptable," he said.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/community/news/doctorphillips/orl-badaudit1108apr11,0,856938.story

But that's not what the General Attorney for the Orange County School District had to say in 2001:

Purchasing Probe of Orange Schools Forces 4 To Resign
Investigators Said They Found Nothing illegal in the two cases that caused four district administrators to step down.

Orlando Sentinel, March 23, 2001

<snip>

An investigation uncovered rule violations in two separate purchases made last year, said Frank Kr*ppenbacher, School Board Attorney.

<snip>

Krupp*nbacher said Gardner did not go through the required bidding process to obtain these items, all of which the district purchased from the same company.

For any purchase totaling more than $15,000 district employees have to get at least three bids and obtain School Board approval of the contract.

<snip>

<article then says that a contracting job was assigned to a Construction company without any bids being put up. The job was given to a company recommended by Gardner, the assistant director of facility services who had done business with them before when he was in the private sector.>

Kruppenbache* said the district has taken steps to keep a closer eye on what goes on in the facilities department. The district is assigning an employee to audit that department more often.

- - -

So in 2001, the general attorney for the Orange County school district clearly knew that three bids had to be obtained for any purchase over $15,000, but in 2008, over the same question of procedure, he states that he and his legal staff simply disagree with the law and their interpretation is, that everything is acceptable.

There was one similarity between the last two articles: The word "sloppy" was given as an excuse for the anomalies.

IMHO, unless you are watching the public lawyers 24/7, they’ll find a way to interpret the laws any way they want to and sloppiness is used all too frequently as an excuse around here. That’s why we need a real organization with teeth to monitor them.

The Orlando Sentinel did a great job by reporting this information, which in the past would have probably been ignored, but I wish they had included the names of the companies which were involved in the no-bid contracts. That’s where it usually starts to get interesting.