Michigan Dumping Troubled Aramark Contract; Municipal Lobbyists ‘Worth Their Weight in Gold’
A municipal lobbyist could be the difference in green-lighting a city's next public works project in Utah. Vadim Ratnikov / Shutterstock.com
Also: A new push for redistricting reform in Illinois and what can Scranton learn from Camden?
LANSING, Michigan: Aramark’s troubled Michigan prison food contract is coming to a premature end. The Philadelphia-based company reached a “mutual agreement” with the state to transition out of its three-year contract starting at the end of July, less than two years into the contract, the Detroit Free Press reported Monday morning. Aramark had a problematic performance, with issues ranging ”from meal shortages to maggots in the kitchen, to smuggling of drugs and other contraband by Aramark employees, to Aramark workers engaging in sex acts with prisoners.” [Detroit Free Press]
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah: Municipal lobbyists are “worth their weight in gold,” according to the mayor of West Jordan, Utah. The Salt Lake Tribune details how some local governments have found that it’s absolutely necessary to spend money on lobbying at the State Capitol and in Washington, D.C. in order to stay competitive in the local arena. "I must state that a couple of neighbors to our east have five different firms that represent them and spend over $500,000," West Jordan Mayor Kim Rolfe told the newspaper. And that can mean the difference between getting projects funded or not. [The Salt Lake Tribune]
SPRINGFIELD, Illinois: It’s highly unlikely that Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner is going to get anywhere on redistricting reform with the majority Democrats in the legislature. But that doesn’t mean efforts to change the way legislative districts are drawn is dead in the Land of Lincoln. As Illinois Public Radio reports, there’s an independent effort pushing a ballot initiative proposal that would have voters decide whether an independent commission should be responsible for drawing political boundaries. [lllinois Public Radio]
SCRANTON, Pennsylvania: The Campbell’s Soup Foundation is adopting the Electric City, mentoring it as part of the America’s Best Communities competition. Campbell’s Soup also sponsors Camden, New Jersey, according to The Times-Tribune, and the foundation will look to take some best practices from its experience working with that city. “We’ve offered to share with them lessons that we’ve learned in Camden,” Dave Stangis, Campbell’s Soup Co. vice president for public affairs and Campbell’s Soup Foundation president said, according to the newspaper. [The Times-Tribune]
FLAGSTAFF, Arizona: Around the nation, there’s a patchwork quilt of municipal regulations that govern home-booking services like Airbnb, Vacation Rentals By Owner and HomeAway. In Northern Arizona’s largest city, hosts are subject to various city and county taxes and must be in compliance with tax and business license codes, the Arizona Daily Sun reports, noting that Flagstaff’s zoning codes don’t prohibit vacation rentals. Thus far, there haven’t been code enforcement complaints regarding vacation rentals in the city. [Arizona Daily Sun]
Michael Grass is Executive Editor of Government Executive’s Route Fifty.
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