news-record.com

By CHRIS FITZSIMON

If you are looking for a perfect example of what’s wrong in Raleigh these days, the legislative report released last week calling for the privatization of state attractions and the closing of historic sites is a good place to start.

The report was commissioned by legislative leaders and prepared by the Program Evaluation Division of the General Assembly with the pithy title, “Operational Changes for State Attractions Could Yield $2 Million Annually and Reduce Reliance on the State.”

The “operational changes” that create the savings include proposals such as closing the five-year-old Museum of the Albemarle in Elizabeth City, privatizing the N.C. Zoo and state aquariums, closing several state parks for months at a time, raising admission fees and ending discounts for senior citizens.

Those recommendations are troubling enough, but “reducing the reliance” on the state is an odd goal for a report on important public institutions. It’s simply another way to shred the government the Republicans loathe and turn over more of its functions to the private for-profit market.

It’s not only happening with tourist attractions, of course, it’s happening with public schools, higher education and health care. There is talk of expanding private prisons and eventually turning over the administration of some toll roads to private operators.

There’s not been much debate about the philosophical shift. The Republican legislative leadership simply takes it on faith that the private sector can do everything better than the state.

That’s clear in last week’s report as the authors repeatedly strain to make the case that shutting down public access to parks and historic sites makes sense.

The report says that charging too little for an attraction could decrease attendance because a higher price increases the perceived importance of the exhibit.

That’s interesting logic, that the more people have to pay the more likely they are to go. Might as well charge $100 to get in to every site, then. Think of the money the state could raise.

The report’s recommendation to close state parks from December to February comes in the middle of the mildest winter on record, with many days seeing temperatures rise into the 60s.

Then there is the recommendation to make local governments staff some of the attractions, the state passing the buck or, more correctly, not passing it.

The news stories about the report included comments from local officials about the damage the recommendations would do to their communities and how closing sites and curtailing hours would reduce students’ understanding and appreciation of the state’s history.

The News & Observer quoted Rep. Julia Howard as saying, “it’s not just about money.” She is right about that.

The report says that in 2010-11, the state spent $106.5 million on the operation of all the sites and attractions that brought in $29.3 million in revenue from admissions and fees.

With roughly 10 million people, that means it costs roughly eight dollars a person per year to provide parks, aquariums, historic sites and a state zoo that all the state’s citizens can enjoy.

There’s no way it is about the money. No one can argue that’s not a good investment for the quality of life in the state.

But this movement isn’t about the quality of life or what is best for communities across North Carolina.

It is about the philosophy that now rules in Raleigh that private is always better — for our parks, our schools, our prisons.

It’s an ideological crusade, not a public policy debate. Last week’s bending of the facts again makes that clear.

Chris Fitzsimon is executive director of NC Policy Watch.