Nepotism & Cronyism in County Government is Alive and Well! by Guest Blogger ReformorElse

Governor Sarah Palin’s selection as a Vice Presidential candidate resulted in some observations about her practice of ‘testing’ the loyalty of staff to her administrations and her hiring of her high school pals. Miami-Dade County hiring practices brought a vague feeling of familiarity because Nepotism runs deep in Miami-Dade Government. For instance, it is common knowledge that Vile Natacha's Seijas' daughter is on the county payroll. You ought to ask your elected officials who-is-who on their staff or where their favorite pals are hanging out these days (in county offices?). It is doubtful that you would get a response.

There used to be, particularly before the strong mayor take-over, a bit of disconnect between the general county staff and the elected officials because the county manager was a buffer for personnel management decisions. Even then, there may have been a mayor or commissioner trying to creep into the manager’s realm in regards to a personnel decision, but at least they were more subtle about it.

The Miami Herald outed the "Friends and Family Plan" in the Police Department. The Transit Director was cited for the same thing; meanwhile, the commissioners and mayor’s staff stood by quietly. It is hard to speak out strongly against nepotism when you have your own version of the "Friends and Family Plan" with your own sons, daughters, friends, spouses, and long lost cousins all lurking about the county job scene quietly stashed among the 30 thousand county employees. Undoubtedly, we even have a lobbyist or two and their children sharing the county benefit plan. So, how does this practice of hiring those people serve the public? It doesn’t, here is why:

• The public does not pay a discounted salary to those people because they were hired without a job placement service. For the most part, I would guess those new hires are paid a better wage than most new hires. I bet the county School Board staff would be loaded with examples of that. I was shocked that our new superintendent was already making $202,000 before he was hired to run the school system. Whose friend was he? Now, the School Board is asking that question too!

• The public does not get the benefit of services that are not filtered through a political agenda. If there is a ‘loyalty test’ required for employees hired into the county system, exactly what are the chances that county employees are not going to weigh their community response against the chances of ticking off the boss? As many of you know, each politician has their own agenda and that agenda is not always in the public’s best interests; therefore staff will tread very carefully when having to decide what is the best truth to serve up to the public.

• The public does not get professional staff through ‘loyalty tests’. They get people who are often not trained in the job they are appointed to. Campaigning for an elected official does not mean you can run a county department. Fund raising, holding breakfasts and working a phone bank does not mean a person knows squat about maneuvering through a bureaucratic system such as the county unless you are trained to do it. There is no advantage in employee longevity or in bringing great expertise to county service if you will never be rewarded for good work and promotions are not merit based.

What does staff loyalty to elected officials have to do with the effectiveness of services in the county? Not a thing. True reform in government comes when the right person is placed in the right job regardless of political ties.