If the charter is amended, direct oversight will switch from the county administrator to the County Commission.
By BILL VARIAN
Published February 5, 2004
TAMPA - Hillsborough voters will have one more ballot question before them in November. This one will be a little more arcane than, say, selecting the president.
Hillsborough commissioners on Wednesday approved asking voters whether they should amend their charter to clarify who is the county attorney's boss.
While the significance may be lost on many voters, the measure drew sharp condemnation from the commission's most senior member, the only one on the board when the charter was crafted.
"The purpose is completely contrary to the spirit and intent of the charter as it was approved by the voters," said Commissioner Jan Platt. "This is nothing more than a power grab by the elected officials."
If approved, the charter change would make the county attorney report directly to the County Commission. Currently, the person in that job reports to the county administrator, who can hire or fire the top lawyer only with the "advice and consent" of the board.
Platt said the crafters of the charter, the county's constitution of sorts, were trying to create a strong, professional administrator. Voters approved the charter language in 1983 after a series of vote-buying scandals on the commission.
"It was intentional," Platt said. "It was absolutely intentional."
But she was on the losing end of a 5-2 vote, with only Commissioner Kathy Castor agreeing with Platt.
The issue arose last year after former County Attorney Emmy Acton came under fire for a series of workplace allegations about office clothes sales, a misused slush fund and how much sick and vacation time she was using without declaring. Former County Administrator Dan Kleman found investigating the complaints awkward because Acton enjoyed broader political support than he did.
Kleman later resigned under threat of being fired. Acton resigned a few days later, citing worsening health complications from diabetes.
However, the awkwardness over how to handle the allegations against Acton prompted Chairman Tom Scott and other commissioners to question the vague supervision of the County Attorney's Office.
The charter language was meant to instill a wall of independence for the county attorney from political pressures.
"We all recognized last year that the language in the charter was very fuzzy," Commissioner Pat Frank said.
Only three people showed for a public hearing on the matter Wednesday. Al Davis, a member of a citizens advisory committee to the commission when the charter was passed, said the issue is one of separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches of government. Commissioners ought not mess with it, he said.
Mimi Osiason, a member of the League of Women Voters of Hillsborough County, urged commissioners to take more time on the issue. Gerald White, a member of the most recent Charter Review Commission as an appointee by Scott, spoke in favor of the change.
White, a member of the Tampa Housing Authority, also spoke of a more substantive change needed in county government: He urged commissioners to consider creating a county mayor. He said the board's recent vote blocking a proposal to redevelop Central Park floated by the investor group Civitas showed the need for an overall leader to safeguard the interests of the community as a whole.
Commissioner Ronda Storms, who represents east and south Hillsborough, encouraged White to pursue it. Better yet, she said, run for Platt's seat when it comes open later this year, using a county mayor and the Civitas proposal as a platform.
"Run for her office and use those two issues and see if you get elected," Storms said.
