School Construction Corp Cutting Costs To The Bone

Boy these guys running the New Jersey School Construction Corp are really taking cost cutting seriously. This is the agency that is supposed to mange an $8.6 billion budget to make repairs and build new schools for certain districts.

Jack Spencer, chief executive officer of the Schools Construction Corp., has already blown through $5.7 billion of the budgeted $8.6 billion and says he needs at least another $6 billion to get the job done. More on the subject here and here.

So now we learn the SSC is cutting costs to the bone - they're eliminating a $2 million advertising campaign. We suppose a "look what we're doing for you" campaign was to be mounted just in time for the elections in November. Are these people good stewards of taxpayer money? In the private sector these people would have been fired long ago. So few people pay attention and so it's business as usual - spend with abandon.

The School Construction Corp in charge of doling out $8.6 billion to build and improve schools in New Jersey - particularly in poor districts - is cutting its costs.

Officials at the SCC announced Wednesday that they would eliminate a $2 million advertising campaign and take other steps to reduce expenses. The agency on Wednesday approved an operating budget of $34.6 million for 2005 - $5 million less than last year.