Town of Braintree

sorry ; um, won't happen again

didn't see that being an issue.thank you

By THO

Using flaggers instead of police


November 19, 2004

Massachusetts could save $37 million to $67 million per year if it replaced police details on road projects with civilian flaggers.
This is the conclusion of a just-released study by the Beacon Hill Institute (BHI) at Suffolk University. Massachusetts is the only state in which businesses, utilities or governmental entities conducting projects on local roads are generally required to use police details rather than civilian flaggers.The police detail system is both unique and expensive, said the study.
Critics argue that the practice of requiring police details inflates costs to businesses and taxpayers, while supporters argue that it improves public safety. Calls for reforms to the system have faced strong opposition from police departments. To date, however, no hard figures have been available to inform the issue, and both sides have relied heavily on anecdotal evidence.
The Beacon Hill Institute study used data from 103 police departments around the state to estimate the cost of police details to cities. The study did not consider details provided by state police officers. Police officers in Massachusetts cities and towns earned an estimated $143 million working off-duty details in 2003. Of this amount, an estimated $94 million went for working traffic assignments.
Using data on property damage and bodily injury claims resulting from automobile accidents for 50 states, BHI found that, contrary to the claims of their defenders, local police details do not improve traffic safety. In fact, Massachusetts has the worst accident rate in the nation as measured by number of accidents causing property damage, and the second worst accident rate as measured by number of accidents causing bodily injury.
''The evidence,'' said Douglas Giuffre, a BHI economist who headed the study, refutes the claim that police details increase safety.'' David G. Tuerck, executive director of BHI, pointed to the study's results as showing that ''police details for traffic control have become an expensive entitlement whose elimination would save Bay Staters millions of dollars a year.''




By THO

Why insult him he doing great

The town employees are getting restless,they don't want the taxpayers to follow their twists and turns.

THO is at least telling the truth and providing worthwhile data to us,the source of your paychecks.
The override monkeys are howling in the background,we need much more much more.

By A Worried taxpayer in Braintree

Quinn Hidden Benefits

Our Police officers under Quinn Bill discovered their overtime work hadn't been paid at Quinn Bill rates, so town now has to pay them back for overtime work performed the past two years at a cost of nearly $600,000 to us taxpayers. We've been duped taxpayers.

By They are Dancing in the Streets