Right now, all the city departments are asking for monies for their budgets in the upcoming year. Tonight will be one of those big meetings where the full city council will discuss the budget for the next 12 months.

Last week we received documentation of true waste. In a time when we are seeking cuts, we learned that CARES act monies were wasted on things that provided no benefit to the city or to combat the pandemic.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury distributed $139 billion of CARES Act to states for their disbursement in funding for municipalities. Massachusetts took in $2.6 billion. Framingham was eligible to receive just over $6 million. CARES Act monies could only be used for specific expenses related to the pandemic, and include:

• Public health emergency recovery planning
• Expenses associated with contract tracing
• Grants to prevent homelessness due to eviction or foreclosure
• Loans to businesses to cover COVID-19 response costs
• Establishing a reserve of Personal Protective Equipment and increasing ICU capacity
• Expenses associated with remote learning

Municipalities were not required to submit spending plans to the Treasury Department before receiving CARES Act funding, but the Inspector General of the Department of the Treasury monitored how funds were spent. If the Inspector General found a disbursement of funds violates the funding requirements, the amount of the disbursement would need to be returned to the Treasury.

In the case of Framingham, instead of using the money for the straight-up purchase of PPE, many departments took the windfall and chose to waste money PPE add-on services, like promotional customizations, embroidery, and logos. In one case, a department spent $8.25 per embroidered mask, when each mask alone would be under a buck each.

Perhaps this department felt that with their faces covered, that the public needed the mask branding to identify the employee’s department better. However the sidearm, badge, and police uniform would also have been sufficient giveaways. Any department what lacked face mask branding, pre-pandemic, didn’t need it during the pandemic. Doing so is waste.

CARES Act monies didn’t need to be only spent on PPE and masks. However, in our lovely city with a culture of “spend spend spend”, chose to spend more than necessary on these items. It’s not a shock that when the city council annually asks the city for 10% across the board cuts as a good will measure to the tax payers, the city ends up presenting across the board tax increases. This is a culture thing. This starts at the top with Mayor Spicer, and trickling down to division heads who signed off on masks at up to 850% the cost, which provided no added benefit on health or safety.

Just two months ago on 4/14/2021, the Framingham Police ordered 500 masks with a 1.92″ x 2.5″ patch embroidered to it. At $8.25 per mask, the total spent on these masks was $4125.

But that was not the only purchase made by the Framingham Police.

The Framingham Police also ordered 500 face masks for $5 each totaling $2500 on 5/19/2020. And 500 more masks at $5 each for a total again of $2500 on 12/28/2020.

FRAMINGHAM POLICE CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $14125

Also is December, Sam Wong, former health director considered purchasing 10,000 city branded face masks at cost of about $2.50 each from the Rafi Nova company in Newton. Fortunately he wound up only purchasing 100 health department branded masks at a cost of $3.50 each + $50 in shipping. The design was the public health logo on one side, and “Framingham Health Department” on the other.

Their purchase was made in late January, with the pandemic winding down. The final design can be seen at the top of this page.

HEALTH DEPT CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $350

It wasn’t just the Health Department and the Police Department getting in on the wasteful CARES Act spend-a-thon festivities.

In September, the Parks Department ordered 150 custom imprinted masks from 4Imprint.com. Their order of Comfy 2-Ply Face Masks, came to $4.72 per mask, plus a $40 set up charge, and $9.12 in shipping. Their mask, was navy, with a black trim, and a imprint on the right side in white.

PARKS DEPT CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $757

But wait, there’s more. The office of the city clerk made a mask purchase. At FU we totally respect City Clerk Ferguson and reached out with a “Say it ain’t so” type email, hoping her order was not a custom order.

In an election year, it was no shock that her CARES Act money would be significant, and the grid below shows that. Her spending for the City Clerk’s office out of CARES Act and other grant monies totaled $36712.

However, her mask purchase through Sakovitz Sports here in Framingham, was placed on 11/30/2020, almost a month AFTER the election. The City Clerk’s order was 100 “Framingham City Clerk” face masks at $5 each. There are two city clerk employees, the election was over, and 100 were ordered.

CITY CLERK CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $500

The Department of Pubic Works didn’t want to be left out of the ordering frenzy, in October the DPW placed an order with Sakovitz Sports. Therir order was for 500 “FDPW” face masks for $2500.

Well into the COVID recovery, the DPW wanted another batch of masks, and on 4/12/2021, duplicated their original order for another $2500.

DPW CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $5000

The Inspectional Services department also got in on the waste-a-thon and placed two orders through Sakovitz Sports. In September an order was placed for 100 custom masks for $500, with a follow-up order in December for 100 custom neck gaiters for $600.

INSPECTIONAL SERVICES CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $1100

The Facilities department wanted masks as well and ordered through Sakovitz Sports. In October an order was placed for 100 custom “Facilities Management” masks for $500.

FACILITIES CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $500

And lastly we cover the Framingham Fire Department who is a semi-special case. On October 29th, 2020, the Digital Federal Credit Union sent the Fire Department a $5000 donation, stating “This donation represents DCU’s support of your organization’s efforts in providing programs and services that make a difference in the community.” In the donation letter it states what the donation should be used for, “The purpose of this donation is to give back and help provide the resources needed by your organization to do the good that you do each and every day….Our objective for our donation is to directly affect the lives of the people who need it the most.”

The Framingham Fire Department took the line “is to directly affect the lives of the people who need it the most” to heart and bought custom printed masks which affect lives in a way that non-custom printed masks do not.

In late July, the fire department, before they even knew about the donation went ahead and ordered from Sakovitz Sports, 500 “Framingham Fire Department” masks for $2500. Using accounting wizardry by Jennifer Pratt and Richard Howarth, they later put that purchase under the donation.

With the donation in hand, the department placed an additional order on December 16th for another 300 masks for $1500.

FIRE DEPARTMENT CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $4000

Is it important to have emergency supplies customized with ones logo? It is when its FREE MONEY, and the purchaser is the CITY OF FRAMINGHAM!

It shouldn’t be a shock that tonight when the city council asks departments where they have made cuts to benefit the taxpayer, they respond that they haven’t.

CITY CUSTOM MASK SPEND: $26332
BECAUSE NON CUSTOM AIN’T GOOD ENOUGH

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