Keeping track of expenses
The political season is getting into high gear (GRRR!) and although I am trying to avoid it for now, I want to give some advice to the candidates and radio producers.
Something happening each election period is program directors airing their favorite candidates’ ads free of charge. In the past we were investigated by the Attorney General’s Office because a candidate had not paid for overdue invoices for ads. I know they don’t have a paper trail like we did but their opponents are keeping track. It is well known that the best way to create a headache for the candidate is placing an accusation of unreported gifts.
The solution will be listing those ads as “In-kind contributions.”
Disability Commission
I have been following the actions of the Lawrence City Council regarding the Commission on Disability and I fear it will go down the same road as the Human Rights Commission: Disappearing.
For almost a year, Richard Rodriguez, Chair of the Commission has been battling with the council for support from the city to be able to do their job. Since last year, they approved a director’s position but the mayor assigned a ridiculous amount of for a salary for someone who will be investigating the cases brought before them and advocating for them with local agencies to provide services.
The Human Rights Commission also was supposed to have a director hired and it never happened. Tired of being neglected by the local authorities, members resigned or didn’t bother to show up for meetings and as a result, the organization died.
Attorney Rodriguez had been doing all the work involved in the Commission’s activities and is requesting assistance with the many expenses incurred. The operating budget he is requesting is $4,565.94. However, Lawrence is required by federal law and court decree to conduct an ADA Self-Evaluation and Transition Plan. Jeff Duggan of the Massachusetts Office on Disability informed the Commission that his office has no record of Lawrence conducting the mandatory ADA Self-Evaluation and Transition Plan. The cost of getting it done is to hire an independent consultant contracted for $20,000.
The other issue is the issuance of parking tickets to violators who park on clearly marked handicapped spaces. The fine is now $300 and Attorney Rodriguez believes those funds should go into an account that provides services to the city. The council responded that “Police officers should not be taken away from fighting crime to actively ticket handicap parking violators and to meet quotas to fill the coffers of the Commission of Disability.”
First of all, his plan is to hire civilian officers from the Lawrence Police Traffic Control Department, not police officers. The city is not fully compliant with the Americans Disabilities Act (ADA) and this income will help pay for the work to get done.
On April 1st, the council decided to address this issue but no one from the Commission was told about the meeting although the police chief and the budget and finance director were asked to attend.
Our councilors are so out of touch that one of them said no other commission or board has a budget. Well, the Human Rights Commission (although not operational right now) has a direct budget line. But Attorney Rodriguez looked further and found that the Licensing Board, Zoning, Registrars and others do have a budget for expenses. I agree with Richard that this amounts to unfair and unequal treatment. The surrounding cities that have adopted a similar plan are Haverhill, Lowell, Methuen, Newburyport and North Andover.
Lawrence is under a court decree for now being in compliance with the ADA. Attorney Rodriguez wrote to the City Council, “Funds collected can be used for some of the items stated in the court decree. It can also show Lawrence is forming partnerships and wants to be part of the problem solvers vested in increasing accessibility and usability of its facilities, programs and services for persons with disabilities. Further, it can show that Lawrence has compassion and care about persons with disabilities, a population that in my opinion has been neglected by society. Finally, Lawrence can take the leadership as in other municipalities to have funds set aside and use solely for the benefit of persons with disabilities.”
Richard will be before the City Council on Tuesday, May 2nd hopefully responding to their questions and on Tuesday morning at 7 o’clock he will join Jose Ayala on his radio show La Movida on WCEC 1490 AM to encourage the public to attend.
Mr. Ayala, who has twin autistic boys, wrote a letter to the mayor and city councilors pleading for understanding the seriousness of the living conditions of people with disabilities and their families are going through at present. He said in part:
“I learned that this item has been pending and tabled for 10 months even after the Commission attended city council meetings, answered all questions and provided documents.
As a father of Andy and Ariel, my twin autistic champions, I beg you please to do the right thing in your power and find common ground with the mayor to supply a fair budget for the Disability Commission to function.”
He closed with an invitation to call in during the show.
Kindergarten Lawrence
While sharing political anecdotes with a friend, it dawned on us that people in Lawrence behave like little kids in kindergarten. Children would get angry at a friend because he or she befriended someone else. “If you’re going to be his or her friend, I’m not yours.”
Oh, WOW! What similarity!
In my case, I shared that someone told me angrily that my writings reveal my preference for certain candidate. There has been very little contact between this person and me in the past and I have never written anything derogatory that could be holding against me. It’s pure politics!
She then confessed how she has lost friends who deleted her telephone number or unfriended her on Facebook because they disagreed in the past. Now, out of the blue, they have returned with calls and messages. Maybe now they are on the same boat but she now knows that she cannot trust them.
People behaving like when they were in kindergarten.
