Penny opponent evades truth

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Bill Bunting's accuracy standard obviously isn't self imposed.

Tuesday afternoon, Pasco County Commission Chairman Peter Altman passed on to his colleagues a request from Bunting, head of the Republican Executive Committee and a leading opponent of the proposed sales tax increase.

Bunting wanted the record set straight. During a public workshop a week earlier, Commissioner Ted Schrader had said a number of chambers of commerce supported the so-called Penny for Pasco to be voted upon March 9.

Schrader acknowledged afterward he was imprecise. The Wesley Chapel and Central Pasco chambers have endorsed the plan, but chambers in Dade City, Zephyrhills and West Pasco have not taken a position. The county obliged Bunting's demand and officials agreed to add a disclaimer on its government channel when the hearing is rebroadcast.

It appears to have been the only time Bunting has been concerned with factual accuracy.

At the same time commissioners met in Dade City, Bunting was being interviewed on WMNF-FM 88.5, doing his best impression of serial fabricator Jayson Blair. Over the course of the interview with news director Rob Lorei, Bunting:

Said the county won't state specifically how much of the sales tax proceeds are going for environmental land preservation.

Bunting hasn't been paying attention. Actually, it's one-quarter of the county's share of the pot, or an estimated $36.3-million over the 10-year life of the tax. The county identified general corridors of protection, but won't identify specific parcels because it doesn't want to send land prices skyward.

Repeated erroneous claims that Broward County requires developers to build public schools for them.

Said an already-approved mall at I-75 and State Road 56 and new growth will help generate $550-million in new tax revenue.

Sounds good, but environmental regulators have yet to approve the mall because of concerns about wetlands damage. And knowing the propensity to inflate numbers to fit their arguments, be leery of the hundreds of millions of dollars. Even if approved this year, the mall's opening would be three years away and sales and property tax revenue is projected at less than $8-million annually.

Much of the Buntings' campaign literature was defrocked as erroneous last week by Times staff writer Bridget Hall Grumet. Bunting's wife, Ann, who heads the Citizens Against Penny for Pasco, even said her figures "might be" off, but she put the blame on the school district for not being forthcoming. A day later, Ann Bunting e-mailed the newspaper to say, "I stand by my figures."

Most egregious of all, Bill Bunting, during the radio interview, accused Allen Altman, head of the citizens committee advocating the sales tax, of ulterior motives. Bunting suggested Altman will profit by selling land he owns at a higher price because of road improvements to be completed with Penny for Pasco money.

Here's the verbatim:

"The head of the citizens for the tax, Allen Altman, is from the east side of the county and he has just recently made purchases of land throughout the east and central part of the county. All of this is going to affect him directly, and he's gonna reap probably a great deal of money if that property is sold. So he has a special interest.

"He's one of those special interests that raised that $145,000 for these developers to come in. So when you start buying up (land) and you are the . . . campaign manager for one of the commissioners that's in office right now, who's also on the east side of the county - I see conflicts of interest here and I'm not happy about this."

Bunting's political ally, Property Appraiser Mike Wells, called the allegation a stretch.

Wells was being generous. A more accurate description could come from Moore-Mickens Education Center principal Steve Cox, but his language already got him in trouble.

Bunting's logic is pure bunk, put forth by someone with no regard for the consequences of his actions except for achieving political victory.

We should note Penny for Pasco road projects in east Pasco are limited to improvements at the intersection of Prospect Road and State Road 52, and resurfacing on part of Clinton Avenue. The closest property Altman owns is a pair of parcels, totaling 20 acres, off U.S. 98 southeast of Dade City. Altman and others bought the citrus grove in October 1989. His partner transferred his share into a living trust in June 2000.

The land is 4 miles from the intersection of Prospect and SR 52, and 2 miles from the end of the Clinton Avenue resurfacing, construction projects that were recommended just three months ago by a county-retained consultant - not Altman's citizens committee.

Some conspiracy.

Other parcels, totaling 68 acres, he and others purchased in June 2003, is pasture land west of Blanton in northwest Pasco. Altman said he intends to divide into home sites of at least 5 acres. It is 41/2 miles from the nearest road project.

Let's set aside the unfounded allegations that tarnish the reputation of a highly respected businessman, civic activist and charitable benefactor.

Besides, Bunting also told the radio station the sales tax isn't needed because additional school aid could be forthcoming to Pasco County because it has an all-Republican legislative delegation and four Republican County commissioners "and I'm sure we all could work together and go to the state . . . and see what the state can do for cutting a check."

Sure, Johnnie Byrd's sheep will be a big help. The delegation hasn't changed since Pasco received the smallest per-pupil increase in state aid of any of Florida's 67 school districts and early attempts this year to change the funding formula is meeting stiff resistance from South Florida legislators.

More importantly, the delegation is trying to boost school construction. Reps. Ken Littlefield and Heather Fiorentino, Pasco's two resident House members, back the Penny for Pasco sales tax. So do all four Republican county commissioners, the Republican sheriff, the Republican school superintendent candidates, and Republicans sitting in nonpartisan positions in each of Pasco's six cities.

Which means Bunting is the only one with an inaccurate definition of Republican leaders working together.

Why is that not a surprise?

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