Nicely using TDOT experience in new job at Safety Department
Gov. Phil Bredesen swore in Nicely, who also heads the Tennessee Department of Transportation, for 60 days after the Safety Department’s top two officials and the commander of the Highway Patrol left state government last week.
Commissioner Fred Phillips resigned and Deputy Commissioner Tom Moore announced he was retiring on Friday, a day after an investigation revealed 41 troopers and staffers had criminal or driving charges in their histories.
Those departures quickly followed the forced resignation of Highway Patrol Col. Lynn Pitts after he allegedly violated state law by trying to purchase a boat seized by troopers and put up for sale as surplus state property.
Bredesen said Nicely brings much-needed management expertise to the Safety Department and appointed him to end what he called “a pattern of cronyism” within the department.
Nicely said he weeded out similar problems at the Transportation Department and plans to do the same in his new position. However, he said, a main goal will be to regain the trust of employees.
“I think the biggest challenge is going to be to try to get the good people there who are the overwhelming majority to understand that they’re respected and what they do is important to the state,” Nicely said. “At TDOT there was a lot of concern over politics and not enough weight given to merit. I tried to ensure that the system was based on merit.”
Bredesen appointed Nicely TDOT commissioner in 2003 after making the agency’s management an issue in his 2002 campaign for governor. Before that Nicely spent 30 years in local government, most of the time as executive director of Nashville’s Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency.
While some might criticize Nicely for not having a law enforcement background, he said he doesn’t expect it to be a problem.
“In a way, it may be good to have somebody that doesn’t have that,” he said. “I do have a long-term history of working in large public agencies.”
Since he’s been with the Transportation Department, TDOT spokeswoman Kim Keelor said Nicely has put in place a number of initiatives to keep politics out of the road-building process.
For instance, he implemented an electronic bidding process to prevent bid rigging and hired an independent consultant to review certain projects, she said.
To improve TDOT’s public image, Nicely formed a community relations division that allows the department to interact with state residents through meetings and a toll-free number where they can report problems or complaints.
“It was his idea for helping improve our communication,” Keelor said. “The public felt transportation wasn’t open enough. They felt we were coming in bulldozing things without getting input from people who would be impacted by the projects.”
Nicely said he’d like to use a similar strategy at the Department of Safety but direct it toward employees.
“I think in dealing with the public and things like that, we were able to convince them that we were going to give them a chance to be heard,” he said. “Here, I think it’s more trying to convince employees they’re going to have a chance to be heard.”
Rep. Phillip Pinion said he’s seen the difference Nicely has made in the Transportation Department and he feels Bredesen picked the right person.
“I don’t think there’s a more honest man in state government than Jerry Nicely,” said the Union City Democrat. “He doesn’t like politics, he’s not been a politician, he’s always worked in government, and he’s never been one to try to cater to politicians.”