Montgomery County’s inspector general is questioning the school system’s bus-camera contract with a company that was involved in a bribery scandal in Texas, noting that all of the revenue from bus-camera tickets goes to the company...
...Like the speed camera program, the bus cameras issue $250 tickets to the owners of those cars — and the company keeps 100% of the revenue until its estimated investment of $18 million is paid off.
BusPatrol America in 2017 bought the contract that Montgomery County Public Schools negotiated with Force Multiplier Solutions...
...The contract, which varied from the Louisiana model, was pitched to the Montgomery County Council as a “no-cost” program, aside from the costs of hiring staff to review camera footage to determine a violation.
“There is a cost because the revenue that comes in from the tickets, that they aren’t getting, is the cost to the county,” Mr. Blansitt said. “So far, as I know, it is $15 million.”
The inspector general said that if MCPS had purchased the cameras or gone through a competitive bidding process, it might have gotten a better deal.
“BusPatrol currently maintains both ownership of the cameras and the associated obligations...
...“Anytime there is a potential savings or potential mismanagement of county funds, that is concerning,” said council member Will Jawando, at-large Democrat. “While it doesn’t look to me that did anything wrong or improper, but it does look like we could get a better deal.”
Mr. Jawando said the council will “dig into the circumstances” of the contract in September...
