Enron Accounting At State Ports Authority?
DESPERATE TIMES APPARENTLY CALL FOR DESPERATE MEASURES
FITSNews - August 22, 2008 - We were more than a little bit surprised to see South Carolina’s Socialist Ports Authority claim to have taken in record revenues and earnings yesterday, particularly just two weeks after the Marxist-Leninists over there were blasted by legislative leaders for their woeful performance.
Even more surprisingly, SPA officials claim they won’t need taxpayer dollars to expand capacity in Charleston (something they should have done over a decade ago), a claim we take with a “harbor full of salt” considering that taxpayers are already shelling out over $160 million in the current state budget because of the SPA’s ass-backward, communist approach to managing our port terminals (i.e. refusing to enter into public-private partnerships).
Obviously, some of the dinosaurs over at the SPA are trying to save their skin in the wake of record declines in container traffic, but have they resorted to Ken Lay-style Enron accounting schemes to do it?
According to one SPA board member who spoke with FITSNews on the condition of anonymity, the answer to that question is “yes.” In fact, here’s what this official had to say when we asked whether or not the State Ports Authority was “cooking its books …”
“I would not presume to say the books are being cooked, but the figures released yesterday obviously do not reflect actual growth in business, but rather price increases on existing customers and an increase in fines assessed to those customers,” the board member told us. “Maersk-Sealand, in particular, was assessed several major penalties which factored into the growth rate.”
Well, well, well. Looks like the Ports Authority is up to its old voodoo economic tricks again - raising fees and fines in an effort to cover the asses of its leaders.
Look, people, the only bottom line you need to know is that container traffic in Charleston is down 10% from last year, while Savannah’s traffic went up 15%. You should also know that Charleston is currently the nation’s eighth-busiest port, whereas three years ago it was the nation’s fourth-busiest port.
What happened? Well, our competition used private money to expand its capacity while we sat around in typical South Carolina fashion with our thumbs up our asses and a not-so-bright look on our faces.
You should also know that the State Transportation Department immediately questioned SPA’s claim that they could finish our long-overdue terminal expansion without resorting to additional taxpayer dollars, saying they “weren’t so sure” about the SPA’s accounting.
Neither are we.
The Ports Authority may have tried to squeeze its babushka out of a tightening noose with this bogus report, but if all they did was jack their fees and fines on existing clients, that certainly constitutes “cooked books” to us.
