by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
A few weeks ago, City Council member Jay Jabour voted against funding for Mayor John Peyton’s proposed Ethics Officer. At the time, Jabour had questions about how the office would function, who it would report to and the role the City’s Ethics Commission would have after Peyton’s nominee for the job — attorney Carla Miller — took over.
Jabour’s questions were answered to his satisfaction and he’s now sponsoring legislation that would appoint Miller to the job and redefine the position. The legislation also calls for a $39,000 budget transfer from the Office of General Counsel to help fund Miller’s part-time position that includes manning the recently-established Ethics hot line.
“The reason I am resubmitting this bill is because I had some concerns and those concerns have been answered,” said Jabour, who chairs the Council Rules Committee. He also sits on the Council Finance Committee. Jabour and Council members Denise Lee and Stephen Joost all originally voted against the Ethics Officer position. “I did not want to leave the Ethics Commission out of the loop. I wanted to know if they were going to be involved or not. I have served on a lot of boards and commissions and they produce some great ideas. But, you get the feeling those ideas are going nowhere.”
The desire to create the Ethics Officer arose earlier this year after one scandal rocked the mayor’s office while a second focused on City Council. The Florida Times-Union reported that an information technology consulting firm owned by Scott Teagle — a longtime Peyton friend and former chief of staff — had gotten nearly $600,000 worth of City IT work despite not being qualified. The Times-Union also discovered possible violations of Florida’s Sunshine Laws by Council. Those violations are currently being examined by the grand jury.
Jabour said he met Monday with the Ethics Commission and talked specifically to Commission vice chair Katie Dearing, an attorney with Liles Gavin Costantino & George.
“After talking to Katie, I felt better,” said Jabour. “This position is more proactive. It will cost an additional $39,000, but the Ethics Officer should find about 10 times that much in waste.”
Dearing said the role of the Ethics Commission won’t change with the addition of an Ethics Officer. In fact, she said the Commission has been pushing for even more funding for the office. Dearing said the Ethics Officer is a separate entity from the Commission. However, Miller will collect reports of complaints and deliver them to the Commission for further investigation.
“We will work together,” said Dearing. “It’s an excellent step.”
Dearing added the Commission is also in the process of rewriting the City’s Ethics Code.
Miller will make $75,000 a year and the funding will come from both the OGC and $36,000 that was previously budgeted for the position formerly held by Stacy Lucas. Mayoral spokesperson Misty Skipper said Miller will be expected to work 20-25 hours a week.
“If she exceeds 25 hours, she will be working on a volunteer basis,” said Skipper, explaining that after 25 hours Miller would be eligible for employee benefits, something that is not a condition of employment.
Skipper also said Miller will handle all of the calls to the hot line.
“She feels it’s important that she’s the one that receives the calls and gets the messages for the integrity of the office,” said Skipper, adding that a full-time Ethics Officer with credentials and experience would cost the City at least $150,000 annually.
The legislation was read into the record last night and assigned to the Rules and Finance committees. Typically, legislation takes about six weeks to officially pass, meaning Miller will be on the job in a voluntary capacity until likely the middle of November.