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Sweeney: We Cannot Rush Into Privatizing Just For Privatization’s Sake

Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney (D-Gloucester/Cumberland/Salem) released the following statement on the release of the Governor’s Privatization Task Force Report earlier today:

“Certainly state government needs to operate in a more cost-effective way, but our history with privatization is dotted with instances where we’ve had to go back and spend more just to clean up mistakes.

“We cannot rush into privatizing just for privatization’s sake. We need to make certain that we’re doing what’s best for taxpayers over the long-run. It would be a mistake to enter into any agreement that might clear money off the state’s books now, but will end up costing residents more because of new fees put in place by a profit-driven private firm.

“The private sector will always be an essential partner to government. But we need to make sure that government services are operated in our residents’ best interests, and not a CEO’s.”