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CLT UPDATE
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Registry of Motor Vehicles flies
employees to work at our expense
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The registry started flying people over to a sleepy RMV office
tucked away in Nantucket’s town hall in 2013 in response to a
staffing shortage, but the expenses didn't end with the airfare.
After a day at work on the resort island, the RMV employees
needed a place to stay, and the home away from home for the registry
workers became the Jared Coffin House in historic downtown
Nantucket.
“It's not exactly a lean-to. It's a beautiful place,” said Chip
Faulkner of Citizens for Limited Taxation. “It's the arrogance of a
state agency, and a state agency with plenty of money to spend and
they don't care about economizing because they don't have to.”
Records obtained by 5 Investigates show the registry spent tens
of thousands of dollars over the last three years on this unusual
arrangement with staff shortages on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.
The flights cost $39,175 and rooms at the inn cost another
$12,555. And then there were trips on the ferries adding up to
$47,412 and taxi fares totaling $18,948.
It all added up to $118,091 in public money, the records show.
And that doesn't even include the cost to feed employees staying
overnight, parking fees, and mileage reimbursement when the workers
used their personal vehicles....
The spending and the explanations now raising only more
questions.
CLT's Faulkner said, "This, you know, may be an aberration, but
it may be the tip of the iceberg."
WCVB TV-5 Investigates
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Mass. Registry of Motor Vehicles flies employees to work
Agency rings up more than $100K on airfare, rooms, and restaurants
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WCVB TV-5
Thursday, March 3, 2016
TV5 Investigates
Mass. Registry of Motor Vehicles flies employees to work
Agency rings up more than $100K on airfare, rooms, and restaurants
By Mike Beaudet
Just another day at work at the Massachusetts Registry of Motor
Vehicles.
Hop on a plane and fly to Nantucket for an all-expenses paid trip
courtesy of the people of Massachusetts.
This was the routine for registry workers day after day, month after
month, year after year.
The registry started flying people over to a sleepy RMV office
tucked away in Nantucket’s town hall in 2013 in response to a
staffing shortage, but the expenses didn't end with the airfare.
After a day at work on the resort island, the RMV employees needed a
place to stay, and the home away from home for the registry workers
became the Jared Coffin House in historic downtown Nantucket.
“It's not exactly a lean-to. It's a beautiful place,” said
Chip Faulkner of Citizens for Limited Taxation. “It's the
arrogance of a state agency, and a state agency with plenty of money
to spend and they don't care about economizing because they don't
have to.”
Records obtained by 5 Investigates show the registry spent tens
of thousands of dollars over the last three years on this unusual
arrangement with staff shortages on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.
The flights cost $39,175 and rooms at the inn cost another $12,555.
And then there were trips on the ferries adding up to $47,412 and
taxi fares totaling $18,948.
It all added up to $118,091 in public money, the records show.
And that doesn't even include the cost to feed employees staying
overnight, parking fees, and mileage reimbursement when the workers
used their personal vehicles.
5 Investigates found the RMV spending was making waves on Nantucket.
“That's a lot of money to waste, traveling back and forth,” said one
resident.
Nantucket has an unemployment rate of 7.5 percent, which is 63
percent higher than the rest of the state.
“I'm sure there are plenty of people on island who would be looking
for a state job with the state benefits,” said another resident.
In an interview with 5 Investigates, Registrar of Motor Vehicles
Erin Deveney did not address the wisdom or cost of flying employees
to Nantucket and putting them up at the local inn.
“The registry was really lucky,” Deveney said. “Last year we had two
staff people ready to hire within two months.
“The great thing is that we're now servicing the residents of
Nantucket with the same level of service that all the residents of
the commonwealth deserve,” she added.
Deveney was chief of staff at the registry when it started flying
workers to the islands. She then left for another state job before
returning to the RMV last March. At that time, she said she
immediately began working to fix the staffing shortages.
“What the registry's been thinking since March 2015 is that we have
an obligation to run a lean efficient business process,” Deveney
said.
Before last year, when employees were flying back and forth to
islands, Deveney said the RMV “maintained services in a way so we
would not completely disenfranchise the residents.”
The spending and the explanations now raising only more questions.
CLT's Faulkner said, "This, you know, may be an
aberration, but it may be the tip of the iceberg."
The registry pointed out that the expenses related to its Nantucket
branch included the ongoing cost of sending road test examiners to
both Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.
The registry offices on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard are among
the least busy in the state.
Those branches were open part-time during the staffing shortages,
but now two full-time employees are assigned to each location five
days a week. Deveney said two full-time employees are needed for
various reasons, including occasions when one employee has to use
the bathroom.
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NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this
material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes
only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
Citizens for Limited Taxation ▪
PO Box 1147 ▪ Marblehead, MA 01945
▪ 508-915-3665
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