Comments on: Governmental Hypocrisy

By: Bob Beard

Bob Beard — Thu, 03 May 2007 19:30:55 +0000

Following up, all these pass holders affirm on application that they will use these passes for public transportation instead of using private transportation and actually sign a statement on the back of each and every card agreeing to their proper use and to use by the holder only. They are intentional theives.

By: Schuyler

Schuyler — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 20:32:58 +0000

I get (and pay for) a monthly pass. There’s a (way too small) discount for getting it through a business program. Some days, I have to drive to remote locations. My wife uses the pass on those days to commute to her job. Nobody’s being ripped off, here, just using what I’ve paid for in a different way (and increasing the use of mass transit).

While I suspect that it’s not quite the same, these Federal employees are moving their use of mass transit to another person’s commute. That isn’t a bad thing. The Federal employee may be in the same position as I am, having to drive to go to multiple meetings in a number of locations, or to go to destinations not reasonably accessible by mass transit. The person they sell it to may reliably use that same mass transit pass every single day.

How much value is there to a pass if you only use it five days a month? It may make simple financial sense to sell it.

By: pesach kremen

pesach kremen — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 02:47:31 +0000

Employees should be required to sign an agreement that the passes are only for their own use and not to be transferred or sold. free parking must be eliminated as well except in special cases for their if verification that transit service doesn’t exist either due the shift or location involved. For those allowed to drive a special pass should be required to be on display in the windshield and the issuing pass agency should not be giving both permission to park and a pass to the same employee. A guaranteed emergency ride home program should also be established. In addition, free parking for users of government services should be eliminated (except where necessary due disability) unless an equivalent benefit is given to those who walk, bike, or use transit.

By: From DC

From DC — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 16:10:59 +0000

The passes are to encourage people to take transit instead of driving. If you live in the DC Metro area, you can only imagine if everyone on Metro drove instead. No one would get to work on time.

Many agencies do not give out the actual passes anymore. You get a SmarTrip card that looks and acts like a debit card. You simply swipe it at the machine, and your subsidy is added electronically. No chance of fraud this way because only your card with your matching serial number can receive the money.

And to answer the other question from Hudson, the same is available for the private sector. Companies, many in this area, chose to do this for employees. It is a pre-tax benefit.

While I think this article is worthwhile in that it shows there are problems, there are many facts left out. Believe it or not, federal employees are not sitting around thinking of ways to make money off of their employer.

By: Allan Rosen

Allan Rosen — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 01:21:41 +0000

I don’t see how the government could be giving away free passes that can easily be sold without knowing this could and would happen. Wouldn’t a picture on the passes prevent them from being able to be sold? Or are we talking about passes that are prepaid by the employee but are considered subsidized because the the employee pays no taxes on the money used to purchase these passes. If the latter is the case, the employee may be trying to recoup the money he spent in months when he cannot use the pass perhaps because he is sick or on vacation. There may be a logical explanation and the program needs to be adjusted accordingly to lessen any potential abuse.

By: Hudson

Hudson — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 01:20:37 +0000

The commuter benefit for 300,000 people which is provided by my tax dollars should be available to all taxpayers, not just federal employees.

By: Paul Carpenter

Paul Carpenter — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 21:10:11 +0000

Employees should be held accountable. I don’t know about being fired but some form of restitution should be required. I think employees should pay a portion of the cost for these passes and they shouldn’t go to people who are not interested in using mass transit. If passes are given out as a benefit of employment then what difference does it make if these employees turn around and sell them for a profit. Its a very natural consequence that is made even more enticing when there is no accountability. Much of this would be avoided if employees paid a share of the cost for transportation.

By: Fred Jandt

Fred Jandt — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 20:58:03 +0000

Let me clarify my position, Chuck.

You’re correct, this program should be expanded. In fact, it probably should be mandatory.

Those people who sold their passes committed theft, plain and simple. They should be at least fired. But the government should be held accountable for not monitoring this better. The amount of these passes that were sold is arguably miniscule to the number that were given out and never used at all.

The government did do a good thing, but they implemented it poorly and it ended up costing tax payers money as a result.

We are told that we need to cut our “addiction to oil” and yet look at the government effectively wasting money through mismanagement. They need to get their house in order first.

By: Chuck Baker

Chuck Baker — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 20:17:06 +0000

Fred, I look forward to your articles every week and really look forward to reading them. I almost always agree with you, but I’ve got to say that this one doesn’t really make any sense.

The government is doing a good thing here to support public transit by offering this commuter benefit to 300,000 people…they shouldn’t be criticized for this. There are LOTS of things the feds do wrong, but this isn’t one of them.

The people who are in the wrong here are the ones who are abusing the program. It is stealing, plain and simple. It’s not the government’s fault that some people are abusing the program, and you shouldn’t make any excuses for these people.

I agree that the government needs to take a leading and much more active role helping to end the country’s addiction to oil, and a bigger investment in public transit would be a big help. But your rambling criticism of the free transit benefit program for commuters is not helpful, as this program is actually something the government is doing right. The program should be expanded.

By: Bob Beard

Bob Beard — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 20:16:11 +0000

Say something nasty or uncalled for while on the air - get fired! In fact, get enough tickets while holding a CDL - get fired. Be a racist in public - someone wants your job. Well, stealing from an employer, my government, me, is also grounds for dismissal. Fire the thieves! It most certainly was intentional.