Tim_White's Blog

Policy wonk Matthew Stark has left the state's Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner to work for Providence Mayor David Cicilline (full release below).

Stark was well-respected on the state level. Handling complex issues for Commissioner Christopher Koller (who may also be the tallest man on the state pay-roll).

Koller lamented to me last week (prior to a taping of Newsmakers) that life without Stark has been lousy, and it is unclear if he will have the revenue to replace him considering the state of the economy.

MAYOR TAPS NEW LEADERSHIP TO HEAD POLICY INITIATIVES

New Policy Director will lead city’s legislative efforts and help shape initiatives to advance Mayor’s priorities for the City of Providence

PROVIDENCE – Mayor David N. Cicilline today announced that he has appointed state policy and communications expert Matthew G. Stark as his new Director of Policy.  Stark, who previously served as Principal Policy Associate in the State’s Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner (OHIC), will play a major role in advancing the City’s legislative priorities as well as helping to identify and implement the administration’s policy initiatives. 

“Matthew Stark recognizes the enormous potential of government to impact positively on people’s lives through innovative, strategic urban policies,” said Mayor Cicilline.  “He also recognizes the value of partnership and possesses a unique ability to bring people together and build consensus around important issues.”

“I believe that government can be a positive force for change in folks' everyday lives,” said Stark. “I am extremely excited to become part of an administration that values transparency, accountability and positive results for those it serves. Providence is fortunate to have a Mayor who values substantive solutions, even when they require long-term planning and dedication. I can't wait to get started serving the people of Providence.”

As Principal Policy Associate in the OHIC, Stark managed the identification, legislation and implementation of the state’s healthcare policy goals.  He’s credited with developing and advancing multiple years of legislative packages and managing the rollout of HEALTHpact, an initiative that provides affordable health insurance products to Rhode Island’s small businesses.  During his tenure at the OHIC, he also developed and implemented strategic communications plans and elevated the profile of the agency.

Prior to joining the state, he served as Communications Director for East Greenwich-based Stark Group and was Project Manager for EpiVax Incorporated where he created systems for project management, business administration and grant submissions as well as managed research and development projects.   Stark also worked as Editorial Assistant for the HIV Education Prison Project at Brown University.

##

Veteran Boston Globe mob reporter Shelley Murphy has a great piece in today's edition on the sad state of the New England Crime family.

Several Ocean State investigators (Providence FBI Organized Crime head Jeff Sallet and State Police Major Steven O'Donnell) are quoted in the piece.

This paragraph sums up their take on the mob nicely:

The local Mafia, which traditionally denounced drugs, now tolerates addicts in its ranks. And some members of the old guard have turned down promotions or become inactive because they fear going back to prison or have lost faith after seeing Mafiosi around the country break omerta, the code of silence, and turn informant or government witness, police said. (Boston Globe)

It's not pretty out there...

But on the other end, the boss, Luigi "Baby Shacks" Manocchio of Federal Hill has kept himself insulated from the law. Aside from a 1999 bust where he admitted giving his elderly mother some hot appliances.

Mob-watchers say the crime family, under his leadership, have gone back to the bread and butter of wiseguy life: illegal sports gambling, loan sharking and extortion.

Illegal activity, of course, but crimes that don't draw the heat of the feds and police like other infractions.

-Tim White

Those in labor vote against a motion to approve the study, but the motion passes.

The study will go forward with results starting to come in by November 12th.

Expect a larger audience that day. (Today, there are 7, including myself).

Walsh: Motion to exclude any study on changes to schedule A. It would be a waste of money because it would never pass, anyway.

Mark Dingley (chief of staff to State Treasurer): If you do that, you remove any potential cost-savings to the state. Objects to the motion.

Williamson concurs, but has to call for the vote since there is a second from Nee.

Nee thinks this vote is too big to even take a vote today and it may merit public discussion.

Williamson disagrees. This is about a study. “No earthquakes, no tidal waves.”

Motion fails.

Any study will include a look at changes to those in Schedule A.

-Tim White

Walsh: Teacher’s moral is at its lowest in state history, probably lower than in the banking crisis. Making the changes to the pension system [that would be studied by the actuary] would make it even more painful.

Williamson: objection noted. The analysis of the actuary is not a conclusion.

There is a motion to expand the study to look at more options.

Williamson wants to know if it would cost more.

Conradi: Yes.

-Tim White

Some quenching levity:

Williamson missed a commission member with his hand up for some time to his right.

He apologizes, “I never look to my right,” Williamson says. “I don’t know why.”

Robert Walsh: “Me neither, Mr. Chairman.”

-Tim White

Date of any changes to pension is proposed to by June 30th 2009.

Nee: Totally object to any study looking at moving people from schedule A to schedule B. Firmly believes that people in A should stay there. Not sure why we are looking at his.

Williamson: This is just a study. The committee would discuss details before making a move.

Nee: In interest of time and money, if we are going to spend the money on looking at a direction (i.e. moving people from A to B), shouldn’t we look at a direction?

There is a sweet feedback happening through the audio system to add to the tension.

-Tim White

Chairman Williamson wants to go with a 3 member subcommittee: One from House of Reps, one member from labor, one member from management.

George Nee (from labor), wants to know what the breakdown of cost would be for each category.

Conradi: 52,500 is a flat fee.

Nee wants a breakdown.

Williamson agrees. Further, he wants an hourly rate for this… that way no one can question what the work is.

-Tim White

 Another seat has filled in.

Conradi (actuary):

First item: The requests from the Commission are too complicated. Suggestion to start with a meeting to discuss various proposals regarding to freezing defined benefit plan and moving all people to defined contribution alternative.

Second item: Take a look at teacher pensions post 2005 changing their structure.

Also may be worth grandfathering some schedule A members, and leaving them untouched. Suggests that members over 57 or with 25 years of service be considered for grandfathering… they would retain schedule A benefits. The rest of the schedule A members would be switched to schedule B.

Third: Take a look at Federal retirement model which includes contribution and smaller pay-out. That portion would also include how the Feds would compare with Schedule B benefits that apply to new members coming into the system.

Other items:

-Prepare analysis that would allow you to see how changing cost of living would impact the cost of the system.

-Take a look at effect of moving to a much later retirement age for unreduced retire to go along with social security age (65, to 67).

Could have first part of results by September 10th.

By October 1st, information on moving schedule A to schedule B.

November 5th: Discussion on the Feds proposal. (The day after election day, making many here nervous). So then this would happen on November 12th.

The rest of the information by December 3rd.

52,500 for the fee on this information (the bill is less because the information requested is less).

More to come.

-Tim White

There are many empty chairs at the Pension Commission – terrible virus or beautiful sunny afternoon. It’s a mystery.

I count 8 empty chairs… just enough for a quorum.

Chairman, Representative Timothy Williamson of West Warwick called the meeting to order at 4:23.

The meeting, as expected, is starting with the presentation from Christian Conradi of Gabriel Roeder Smith & Compmany for the actuarial study.

Highlights (i.e. how much this thing will cost) in a moment.

-Tim White

"The Commission to Study all Aspects of the State Pension and Retirement System" (let’s just call it the “Pension Commission” from here on out) is meeting in room 313 of the State House at 4 this afternoon.

I will be blogging from the cheap seats.

The commission has been on its summer hiatus – on the agenda, we’re going to learn just how pricey a proposed actuarial study will be. Early estimates, near 200-thousand dollars.

By the way, it's 4:02.

The politicians are shockingly late.

- Tim White

"The Commission to Study all Aspects of the State Pension and Retirement System" (let’s just call it the “Pension Commission” from here on out) is meeting in room 313 of the State House at 4 this afternoon.

I will be blogging from the cheap seats.

The commission has been on its summer hiatus – on the agenda, we’re going to learn just how pricey a proposed actuarial study will be. Early estimates, near 200-thousand dollars.

By the way, it's 4:02.

The politicians are shockingly late.

- Tim White

Really? Carmen "one-spoon-full-of-sugar-away-from-500-pounds" DiNunzio is going to start excersising now?

Associated Press:

BOSTON (AP) -- The obese reputed underboss of the New England

mafia is asking a federal judge to release him from home

confinement for two hours a day so he can exercise.

   A lawyer for Carmen "The Cheeseman" DiNunzio filed a petition

on Tuesday that said a doctor has recommended 30 minutes of

"sustained aerobic exercise" per day as DiNunzio battles a

variety of health ailments, including diabetes and heart disease.

   DiNunzio also wants permission to periodically spend the night

at a hospital for treatment of sleep apnea.

   His lawyer, Anthony Cardinale, says federal prosecutors have not

objected to the request.

   DiNunzio has been free on $20,000 bail since his May indictment

on charges that he tried to bribe a Big Dig official. He's called

"The Cheeseman" because he owns a North End cheese shop.

Last night, we aired an update on the notorious Highway Killings cold case from the 1980's.

9 women, all of them prostitutes who frequented the Weld Square area in New Bedford were killed and their bodies dumped along the highways around New Bedford. Two other women were never found believed to have fallen to the same fate.

Our story centered around an extended interview with Bristol Country DA Sam Sutter, prosecutor William McCaulie, and Detective Lieutenant Stephen O'Reilly of the Massachusetts State police; all key players in the re-opened investigation.

During the interview, Detective O'Reilly launched a barb at former DA, Paul Walsh.

"We were never allowed to send [evidence] back in by the past administration," Walsh says. "When Mr. Sutter came in the office that was one of our first priorities, is to send this evidence all back."

O'Reilly went on to say, after the cameras were off, that Walsh actually refused a federal grant to resend the highway Killings evidence back for analysis.

I reached out to Walsh for his response.

"Not true," he says. "Probably every year for 16 years, we were chasing leads in California, Portugal, every time something came in with a similar nature, we would take a look at that. There was an exhaustive amount of work done over the last 16 years."

I asked him, again, if he ever refused a federal grant. Walsh denies the accusation and went on to say he has no idea where Detective O'Reilly got that.

Walsh was reluctant to get dragged back into the mud over this issue (a hot topic during the campaign when Walsh lost to Sutter).

"Something I respected about Ron Pina (his predecessor), was he never cast disparaging remarks from the cheap seats. And I'm not going to do that either," he says. "If they were to solve [The Highway Killings], I would be the first to congratulate them."

It's important to note Walsh believes the Highway Killer was Antonio DeGrazia, who killed himself in 1991 after one-time suspect Kenneth Ponte was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Sutter is awaiting the results of the analysis, which he expects back by early 2009 -- and even floats the idea that there may be multiple killers.

"I think its time well spent," Sutter says. "I wouldn't spend it if I didn't think there wasn’t any chance, any realistic chance that we would make progress and solve these killings."

-Tim White

It's a rare treat to sink your teeth into a good old-fashioned sign-stealing story outside the realm of active political campaigning (Presidential race aside).

The Associated Press Reports: