Out with 'Enforcement' in with 'Service'

Would a code enforcement division, by any other name, be less bureaucratic/intimidating?

The City of Cedar Rapids seems to think so. From a news release this morning:

City Changes Name of Division to Reflect Services Provided

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA - January 5, 2011 - As of January 1, 2012, the City of Cedar Rapids has changed the name of the Code Enforcement Division to the Building Services Division. “We improved the division's name so that it more clearly reflects the services it provides,” said City Manager Jeff Pomeranz. “The 33 employees in the Building Services Division work hard to protect the safety of our citizens.”

With its new name, the Building Services Division will continue to operate in the Public Works Building located at 1201 6th Street SW and to provide assistance to builders and the general public with construction codes and other regulations between 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on weekdays. The phone number for the division, 319-286-5831, will remain the same.

The Building Services Division is made up of five core areas: Housing Inspections, Building and Trades Inspections, Zoning and Nuisance Abatement. Housing Inspections employees are responsible for inspections of all residential rental properties within city limits, as well as rental property complaints. Building and Trades employees provide code inspection duties for all construction work permitted in city limits, including Building, Plumbing, Electrical and Mechanical Permits. Zoning employees issue sign permits and review all building trade permits. Nuisance employees investigate nuisance complaints and work with property owners and other responsible parties to abate the nuisance in a timely manner.

I'm not sure the name change will make much of a difference to citizens, but I guess it's fine by me. If I worked there, I imagine it might be tough to go from being a super-cool "enforcer" to being a service provider. And they do run the risk of being referred to by the acronym for Building Services.

This sort of thing can be tricky. I've seen it at the state level. Once, the state tried to consolidate several agencies under the umbrella of a Department of Administrative Management, or DAM. Statehouse types opted for Department of Management.

Lawmakers changed the Department of Elder Affairs to the Department on Aging. And the DOA has prompted a few snickers.

But after years of snide remarks, the Iowa Department of Economic Development, IDED, is now the Iowa Partnership for Economic Progress, or IPEP. Feel better? I know I do.

Maybe you have some names you'd like to call government. I bet you do.