The Pros and Cons of Privatizing Government Functions
Outsourcing may seem like a perfect solution for deficit-plagued governments, but the morning after can bring some unpleasant surprises.
November 29, 2010 •
Last summer, residents of Maywood, Calif., woke up one morning to find the government as they knew it gone. After years of corruption and mismanagement, the small, blue-collar city south of Los Angeles fired almost all of its employees, dismantled its police department and contracted with a neighboring city to take over most municipal tasks. On July 1, local officials announced that Maywood had become the country’s first city to be fully outsourced.