Charter Review Commission Approves Ballot Language To Triple Commissioner Pay

The Language Does Not Give The Financial Details

On Monday, February 9th, the Clay County Charter Review Commission (CRC) officially approved language for a ballot measure to undo a 2008 provision limiting County Commissioner pay.

The approved language is as follows:

“Shall Clay County amend its charter so that county commissioners’ compensation is limited to the salary set forth by state law, Florida Statute 145.031?”

The language is concise, to be sure, but leaves out just how much more money the county commissioners would make if this measure is approved.

In most of Florida, the pay of a county commissioner is set by state law. The only exception is in counties that have a charter, as Clay does. Charter counties are free to reduce or increase the pay of their commissioners as they see fit.

And back in 2008, the voters of Clay County saw fit to freeze the pay of County Commissioners at $37,000. If the ballot measure is approved, Commissioner pay would nearly triple to over $100,000.

In the years prior to the freeze, Clay County was the focus of an FBI investigation and a resulting Grand Jury that uncovered more than $9 million in fraudulent use of tax dollars.

This revelation led to the removal of one County Commissioner, Christy Fitzgerald, the indictment of the county’s Director of Public Works, and admonishment of every other County Commissioner for being asleep at the wheel, save one newly elected commissioner.

Commissioner Fitzgerald and then Public Works Director Arthur Ivey used public employees, equipment, and land to hurricane-proof Fitzgerald’s house.

Ivey was also indicted on felonies, including four counts of grand theft, four counts of official misconduct, two counts of littering, and two counts of violating competitive bidding laws.

Commissioners Patrick McGovern, George Bush, Glenn Lassiter, Christy Fitzgerald, and former Commissioner Larry Lancaster were informed of issues in the Public Works department through an internal audit, but did nothing to correct them.

The Commissioners were admonished in the official Grand Jury report for “failing the citizens of Clay County.” The Grand Jury also questioned whether they were fit to continue in public service.

This scandal led to a public sentiment that the county government and elected officials were not trustworthy. So the people of Clay County voted to limit the position's pay as a reflection of that distrust.

In the ensuing years, two iterations of the Charter Review Commission have attempted to undo the will of the voters. Each time, the effort was soundly rejected at the polls.

But this version of the Charter Review Commission does not appear to have learned anything from past scandals or defeats. No, this CRC believes it can fool voters into approving the measure for increased pay by omitting any details of the increase from the ballot language.

The irony of using disingenuous language on the ballot to undo a measure enacted to punish disingenuous actions by previous County Commissioners is palpable.

But there were several unsung heroes in the meeting, starting with CRC members Matthew Mitchell and Tim Nguyen and CRC Chair Courtney Connor, all of whom voted against the measure.

And lastly, current County Commissioner Betsy Condon spoke during the public comment section of the meeting. And though she highlighted the amount of work it takes to be a successful county commissioner and the fact that the current pay is essentially minimum wage, she stopped short of advocating for a pay increase.

Per Condon, the CRC focuses too much time on Commissioner pay when far more impactful issues are within their purview, such as reducing or eliminating the county’s utility tax. The removal of this tax would put as much as $4 million back into taxpayers' pockets, according to Condon.

It appears as though the CRC has made up its mind, and the only recourse left for voters is to decide whether to defeat this measure at the polls for the third time in 12 years.