How to Plow Through the Appearance of Favoritism

One of the most damaging kinds of preferential treatment is one that is hard to pin on any one individual:  public works work done for some, but not for others, or done for some before being done for others. Whether or not this is done in any particular city or county, people talk about it, speculating that it is done, talking about things they've seen and heard. It's an important part of the perception that local government is run for those in government and those with political connections, and that the "important" areas of town (i.e., where the wealthy and powerful live) are favored.

And who is to say it's not happening? Denials are meaningless, explanations often futile.

Enter modern technology, more specifically GPS and online mapping. This is how, as of today, Chicago is dealing with suspicions that some areas of the city are being favored over others when it comes to the city's most important public works work:  snow plowing. The city has unveiled something it calls Plow Tracker on its Chicago Shovels page, which includes other relevant programs, such as Snow Corps, a way to lend a hand to neighbors who can't shovel their walks.

Come the next snow (none is predicted for this week, of course), Chicagoans will be able to watch the shovels move around town in real time. Such transparency will hopefully both put to rest citizens' concerns about favoritism, and make favoritism less likely to occur.

Would it burden lobbyists' First Amendment rights to tie their smartphones' GPS in to an online mapping program?

Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics

203-859-1959