BART would more than double the budget for the transit agency’s internal investigative office under a proposal announced by BART and Metropolitan Transportation Commission officials.
The proposal by BART General Manager Bob Powers and MTC Executive Director Andrew Fremier would expand the annual budget for BART’s Office of the Inspector General from $1 million to $2.7 million.
Much of the budget increase would come from 2018’s Regional Measure 3, a voter-approved bridge toll hike intended to pay for transportation infrastructure improvements across the Bay Area. BART would also allocate $600,000 from its operating budget to support the OIG, according to Powers and Fremier.
In addition to providing funding for infrastructure projects, Regional Measure 3 created the OIG to ensure BART was properly spending public funding.
A 2022 report by the Alameda County Civil Grand Jury argued that the BART OIG “is significantly underfunded and unable to fulfill its mission of uncovering waste, fraud and abuse.”
The office had just three employees until March 17, when Inspector General Harriet Richardson resigned, arguing that her office was repeatedly hamstrung by both BART management and a lack of resources.
“BART is committed to ensuring a smooth transition and supporting the office with increased resources to help investigate waste, fraud, and abuse complaints,” Powers said in a statement.
The Bay Area Toll Authority, which operates under the MTC’s umbrella, is expected to consider the budget increase this spring.
The BART Board of Directors will also consider adopting the increase in June as part of the agency’s annual budget process.
7 comments
Who’s friend are they hiring…
A pay cut. For all those making over $200,000 should come first. Really. No public servant should make three or four times the standard for most citizens. They might have to sell their vacation homes and cancel the European trip for the whole family. Maybe even sell off the 4-5 automobiles they keep in storage.
Draconian? They won’t starve, unlike the lower middle class who pay their wages … AND exorbitant rent for their properties.
.
Bridge crossers are the cash cows of the SF Bay Area.
.
Tolls were intended to pay for the development and upkeep of the bridges. Now the tolls pay for items outside of the bridges themselves… MTC salaries, administrative plans, bike lanes, bus routes, bus equipment, and subsidies for failing transit systems like BART.
.
The public should audit the toll revenue stream.
.
More $$ for internal investigation – but no incremental $$ – they fund it within their own budget.
If I take BART’s estimated budget $1.25 billion and divide it by the estimated riders for 2023 I estimate it cost approximately $20.00 per ride. If they charged that much per ticket it would solve so many of their problems.
No mention if the new investigation staff will be the buddies of the cure BART board
Imagine what it would be like if we could all spend money like drunken sailors, only to have our accounts replenished. The eventuality is bankruptcy.
Comments are closed.