Thread: DPS commander in dark about funding (Arpaio)

Political insider: DPS commander in dark about funding
May. 18, 2008 12:00 AM

April Fools! . . . The world of Arizona politics was dominated last week with news of Gov. Janet Napolitano's decision to shift more than $1 million in state funding from Sheriff Joe Arpaio's gang/immigration enforcement to a state-led task force aimed at felony fugitives.

While Arpaio appeared stunned by the move, Napolitano told reporters it had been in the works "since at least October." If that's the case, someone really should have notified Dan Wells. You know, the Arizona Department of Public Safety commander with the state's Gang Enforcement Bureau . . .

Because on April 1, weeks prior to Napolitano's signing of an executive order forming the fugitives task force, Wells penned a letter to the Sheriff's Office indicating that it would receive state funding to continue its enforcement. The letter, from Wells to Sheriff's Office administrator Suzanne Ashmore, cited a portion of the Intergovernmental Agreement between the state and county that stipulated that "the agreement shall automatically renew itself . . . if DPS sends out a written notice of funding availability to the agency . . . " advertisement




Wells' next line read: "We are pleased to issue this letter, which will serve as our notification of funding availability until May 17, 2009."

The April 1 letter aside, the Governor's Office noted that the agreement provided an escape clause to either the county or state. Napolitano spokeswoman Jeanine L'Ecuyer attributed the memo to "crossed wires" between the DPS and Governor's Office.

"It's a big office," she explained. "It just sounds to me like Wells was out of the loop for whatever reason."

Do as I say, not as I drive . . . Two of the key backers of a bill that would have slammed the brakes on the state's Clean Cars program have an interesting choice of vehicles: Hybrids. Rep. Bill Konopnicki, sponsor of House Bill 2017, drives a Prius. And Glenn Hamer, president of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry, pulled up to a Capitol news conference called to support the bill in a Prius.

Both men say they're fans of the fuel efficient (and low-emissions) gas-electric hybrids. They just don't want the state imposing new regulations on cars without getting the Legislature involved. Or costing Arizona consumers more, if Hamer's poll is to be believed.

The bill was vetoed late last week by Gov. Janet Napolitano, who called it "micromanagement" and defended the authority of state agencies to enact rules that would protect air and water quality. The guv's choice of wheels? Well, she lives with the pick of the state Department of Public Safety, which currently is driving her around in a gas-only Chrysler 300. It is equipped with a fuel-saving mechanism, DPS spokesman Bart Graves said, which basically makes the six-cylinder engine a four cylinder for in-town driving.

And forget seeing a hybrid as the official gov-mobile. Graves said DPS needs the power of a fuel-injection car for security reasons. And they need a roomier car than the typical hybrid (which seats five) can accommodate. Hmmm . . . how big is the meeting table in the back of that Chrysler? Any chance to switch the official state car to, say, a hybrid?

Quote of the week: "If you keep reinventing the wheel, you end with something rectangular and you can't move the wagon forward." - State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne, rebuffing suggestions that the state's AIMS test needs revisions.



Compiled by Republic reporters Matthew Benson and Mary Jo Pitzl, Keep up with the latest in Arizona politics at insider .azcentral.com.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepubli ... 0518.html#

Prius is rated at 34mpg hwy...of course that never is right. People act like the only way to go is hybrid. I drive a Chevrolet Prism, which is a clone of the Toyota Corolla and with synthetic crackcase oil, I get 39-40 mpg hwy. At a cost of HALF the Prius. Plus I sold my 1990 Prism that had over 300,000 miles on it and it's still on the road 4 years later. It's highly questionable if a Prius will pass 100K because of the battery.