Great Moments in Government

Posted on February 25, 2008
Filed Under Public Policy |

Seriously, there are times when I think that here we are in the 21st century and THIS is the best we can do for leadership in public service.

This first story is about some hydrogen buses that the VTA (public transportation in San Jose, Santa Clara, etc.) has running. If I told you that new car was going to cost you 32 times more each time you filled it up and you wouldn’t be able to repair it, well you probably would pass on it… not the VTA.

The most glaring figure: Zero-emission buses - or ZEBs - cost $51.66 to fuel, maintain and operate per mile compared to just $1.61 for a 40-foot conventional diesel coach. They break down much more frequently, and replacement parts are next to impossible to order, according to the report.

[From VTA: Zero-emissions bus runs super clean, but super pricey - San Jose Mercury News]

And now for the Jesse Ventura of California, our own Guvernator wants to trim MediCal by making people fill out more paperwork. Brilliant.

Now, with his health care expansion on the rocks and the state facing a multibillion-dollar budget gap next year, Schwarzenegger has proposed a plan to make most enrollees of state-sponsored medical care fill out more eligibility paperwork as a means of saving money - a move that critics say is insidious.

[From Governor's plan would cut Medi-Cal rolls]

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