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BILL VARIANMembers vote no confidence in HARTline Executive Director Sharon Dent. Some say an audit shows she lied to them about the use of county money.
TAMPA - Hillsborough commissioners formally declared their lack of confidence in the head of the county's transit agency, in response to a critical report from their performance auditor.
While commissioners have no direct supervisory responsibility over the agency, their 5-2 no-confidence vote came with threats to yank county funding to the agency, and even replace some of their appointees to the board of Hillsborough Area Regional Transit.
"Unless that board takes immediate action and makes some changes," said commission Chairman Tom Scott, a past advocate for HARTline, "they can't expect support financially from me in the future."
The no-confidence vote will be sent in a formal notice to the HARTline board, some of whom were in the commission's chambers Wednesday for what amounted to a lengthy tongue-lashing. The two commissioners who voted against it were Jan Platt, who is a board member of HARTline, and Kathy Castor.
Platt argued that commissioners were jumping the gun in taking any action before the performance auditor has issued her final report, and before Clerk of Circuit Court Richard Ake undertakes a broader audit of the agency.
But other commissioners accused HARTline Executive Director Sharon Dent, the subject of the no-confidence vote, of denying allegations they felt are now proven true, and lying to them about whether money for buses went to pay Channelside streetcar expenses.
"I won't use a more colorful expletive here," said Commissioner Ronda Storms. "But what the heck is going on?"
Commissioners voted unanimously to have performance auditor Kathleen Mathews complete her report within the next two weeks. Mathews must still get formal responses to her draft report from Dent.
"We are working very hard to respond to the audit," Dent said after the meeting. "We understand the importance of having the support of county commissioners."
She said she believes she may be able to clarify several issues raised in the audit that may lessen some of its sting.
A draft of Mathews' report, released Monday, came up with initial findings of wrongdoing by the bus agency that include: paying for work that had not been performed; improperly used money meant for buses on a streetcar line; exceeding spending limits in some areas; and not paying bills in a timely fashion.
The allegations initially were raised by former HARTline employee John Dausman, who was fired by the agency. Dausman, a former senior planner with the agency, said he was fired last August for blowing the whistle on HARTline spending practices.
Dent has said he was fired for inappropriately grabbing another employee.
Additionally, Wednesday, Scott said he has received two anonymous complaints that employees of HARTline have either removed or destroyed some of the documents Mathews was seeking. Dent said she referred those allegations to the FBI Wednesday.
Commissioners Storms and Pat Frank further recalled that Dent assured them in prior budget hearings that money meant for buses did not pay for streetcar expenses, a project both opposed. Mathews' report appears to contradict that.
Hillsborough County gives HARTline $1.3-million annually to pay for Sunday bus services and localized circular routes, such as one in the University of South Florida area. HARTline officials said at the time of the budget allocations that they didn't have money for the services.
"They came here, down in the mouth, in their best hobo clothes, and told us they didn't have the money for it," Storms said.
In the meantime, Mathews' report indicates, bus money was being used for some streetcar expenses. Dent contends the $200,000 in federal grant money in question is allowed to be used for streetcar expenses.
Commissioners stopped short of cutting the funding in retaliation by a narrow 4-3 vote on a motion made by Jim Norman. He was joined by Commissioners Platt, Castor and Ken Hagan.
They also held off replacing the three representatives to the HARTline board they appointed, after the commission's attorney told them they would have to formally cite them for some type of wrongdoing, such as misfeasance or malfeasance.