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Council members should understand their limits

A pair of Pasco cities are trying to figure out who is in charge at their city halls.

Port Richey and Zephyrhills have city manager forms of government in which elected council members enact policies and the professional staff administers them. Both cities, however, are experiencing council members overstepping their boundaries.

In Zephyrhills, a citizens committee reviewing the city charter is adding proposed language to cut out potential interference from council members. Port Richey already has such a provision in its city charter, but that doesn't end the micromanagement from the council dais.

Case in point: Port Richey Mayor Mark Abbott spent months trying to sway City Manager Jerry Calhoun to use a particular copying machine system. Tuesday evening, council member Phyllis Grae attempted to bench a city-retained attorney negotiating with the union representing the city workers. Grae balked at the mounting legal bills and wanted Calhoun to handle the negotiations minus a labor lawyer.

Calhoun, hired eight months ago, stood his ground. He characterized Abbott's intervention in the copying machine lease as "out of hand" and told Grae her suggestion would make the council "derelict in (its) duties."

We hope council members get the message. Though the specific examples may seem mundane to the public, the episode is indicative of council members who don't know their roles. Abbott has been in office just more than four months and is still learning. Grae, however, has been on the council since 2000 and should be well aware of the dangers of council attempts to run roughshod over the city staff. Such interference from one of her predecessors brought an embarrassing grand jury investigation.

Zephyrhills hasn't experienced a criminal probe of its city government, but it, too, has an elected council member assuming administrative responsibilities. There, council member Gina King met with rank-and-file members of the Police Department to discuss overtime and other issues without notifying City Manager Steve Spina or police Chief Russell Barnes.

On the surface, it also appears to be a minor transgression, particularly because the council later agreed to fund four new police positions in the upcoming budget. But allowing council members to sidestep the chain of command is a dangerous precedent that invites the potential for abuse. King has shown a preponderance for micromanaging previously. Last year, she said an accounting error that brought a budget shortfall warranted termination of the employee responsible.

She and the rest of the Zephyrhills City Council should look at Pasco County as a model. County Administrator John Gallagher requires all commission directives to funnel through his office. There is good reason: A grand jury also investigated how county government functioned before Gallagher's arrival in 1982.

Commissioners didn't need a lot of convincing. They agreed to Gallagher's rule to end their direct involvement in county operations after a public shellacking from the grand jury that pointed out "widespread inefficiency and incompetence" and a "taxpayers-be-damned attitude."

By nearly all accounts, except for council member King's sentiments, Zephyrhills is considered a well-managed city. A consultant helping to draft proposed changes to Zephyrhills' city charter suggested Wednesday the city add a noninterference provision. It would prohibit council members from butting into the daily operations at City Hall. The timing is coincidental to King's recent dispute with Spina, but it is a welcome addition to the charter that will be considered by voters next year.

Differentiating between legislation and administration is key to effective local governing and a precursor to limiting opportunities for abuse.

[Last modified August 26, 2005, 01:36:21]