Northpinellas: Two-fifths of council file form for cruise

Two-fifths of council file form for cruise

The others doubt whether they had to report the trip to the state as a gift of over $100.

By ED QUIOCO

OLDSMAR -- The Oldsmar City Council began its evening as the guest of a national waste-hauling company with a brief ride in a white stretch limousine.

The limo took the five council members and their wives to a cruise boat that was embarking on a sightseeing tour of Fort Lauderdale's coastline. Once aboard, the Oldsmar contingent, along with more than 100 other local elected officials and their spouses from throughout Florida, were treated to roast beef and jumbo shrimp, an open bar and hand-rolled cigars. A singer and a magician provided entertainment.

Everything was free, courtesy of Republic Services Inc., the third largest waste-hauling company in the industry.

The cruise took place Aug. 11. If council members planned to report the cruise as a gift valued at more than $100, they had until Dec. 31 to file the required disclosure form with the state. Two council members, Dave Tilki and Ed Richards, filed the form.

The other three -- Mayor Jeff Sandler and council members Ed Manny and Brian Michaels -- either said that they were unaware they had to file the form or that they thought the value of the dinner cruise was less than $100.

All three also said that Richards only filed a disclosure form to create political ammunition that he could use to embarrass his colleagues.

"It really upsets the hell out of me that Ed (Richards) would insinuate that anyone on this council would be doing something wrong by going on a sightseeing trip," Sandler said. "I'm angry at him, and I'm tired of him. For years, he has thrown stones for no damn reason, and I'm tired of it."

Richards said that he filed the form because it is required by state law. He also said that the city's $1.2-million contract for recycling and solid-waste pick up expires in September, which means it is possible that the company that provided the cruise could end up vying for the new contract.

If that is the case, he said, it is best for city leaders to disclose publicly that they had been treated to a "pretty extravagant" cruise.

"I came back and filed my papers, baby," Richards said. "I have nothing to hide. I know what (the company) wanted. They wanted to come and bid on the waste-hauling contract."

The cruise was one of several activities available during the Florida League of Cities' convention in Fort Lauderdale last August. Republic Services and more than 100 other companies had booths at the convention, which drew elected officials from all over the state.

Republic Services spokesman Will Flower said competition is stiff in the waste-hauling industry.

The cruise was "an opportunity to educate people about what is new in the waste industry," Flower said. Billionaire Wayne Huizenga is chairman of the company, which is publicly traded. The company had an open invitation for the cruise and tried to invite as many elected officials as it could, Flower said. He estimated that the cost of the cruise was $65 to $75 per person.

At those prices, the value of the event for each elected official and his or her spouse is more than $100.

Helen Jones, a spokeswoman for the Florida Commission on Ethics, said gifts to the spouses of elected officials need to be reported if the reason the spouse was given the gift was because of the elected official's position.

Darryl Paulson, University of South Florida professor of government and chairman of Citizens for Fair Campaign Practices, said situations like this are common in politics. He said there are two prevailing issues.

"One is whether they complied with the state law, which they were duty-bound to do," Paulson said. "The second issue is, should any of them have gone in the first place? I think the prudent policy for any elected official is simply not to participate."

Sandler said just because he went on the cruise does not mean he would give the company any special consideration if it bids for a city contract. As a matter of fact, he said, he doesn't even remember the name of the company that paid for the cruise.

"I think that it's kind of ridiculous that someone taking you on a dinner cruise, which is a flip-of-the-coin value situation . . . to think that would influence the vote on anything is pretty conspiratorial and naive," Sandler said.

"As far as I'm concerned, these kinds of things go hand-in-hand with the networking that goes on at various kinds of receptions and events. It's part of the job."

In a busy month, Sandler said, he may attend as many as 10 to 12 receptions, and it is difficult to estimate the cost of each one because that information is not readily available.

"There are so many of these kinds of things that you go to when you are in office, and it's part of your job, and every one of them is a guess-low or guess-high type of thing," Sandler said. "Are some of these things nice? Sure they are, but for every one of these things that are nice, you go to at least 10 that are awful."

Tilki said he can understand why some of his colleagues did not file. He said he struggled to come up with a cost for the event, and he could have just as easily determined that it had cost less than $100.

"I just think it's just a matter of what you perceive the cost to be," Tilki said. On his disclosure form filed with the state, Tilki estimated the cruise cost $200 for him and his wife. Richards estimated the cost at $332.

"I just figured I would rather be safe than sorry," Tilki said. "I just took my best guess, and it was close to the threshold, so I figured I would just file."

Michaels said he was aware that he had to file a disclosure form for gifts of more than $100, but he figured the cruise was valued at less than $100.

"I have no way of putting a value on it," he said. "Somebody else's opinion might tag it at a higher price, but it's all perception."

Manny said although he did not know how much the cruise cost, he was sure it was over $100. But he did not file because he considered the cruise a part of the convention. He also said that these gatherings provide an opportunity to share ideas with other elected officials.

"I have no idea how much to say it was worth, and since it was not something that was exclusive, I didn't think that it was required," Manny said. "There are always special events that go on, and I doubt whether anybody ever makes out a form for those special events."

Richards said if his colleagues had any doubts, they should have filed the disclosure form just to be on the safe side, especially because of everything that was provided for free during the cruise.

"They had shrimp on that boat, that large jumbo shrimp," Richards said. "I've never seen shrimp that big before."

Sandler, who estimated the cost of the cruise was about $50 per person, disagreed with Richards' description of the event as extravagant.

"Ed (Richards) doesn't get out very often, I suspect," Sandler said. "If his perception was that this was some sort of opulent, fabulous reception, that was not my perception. It was an event mainly designed for people to enjoy each other's company and do some sightseeing."

Sandler said Richards is just trying to embarrass Manny, who is running for mayor in the March election. Sandler has chosen not to run for re-election.

"There is no question in my mind that whatever he does is politically motivated," Sandler said. "I think he is trying to impair (Ed Manny's) ability to run for mayor."

Richards also threatened to file a complaint with the ethics commission about a decision council members made on an unrelated matter in December. On Thursday, there were no complaints filed with the commission on Oldsmar's elected officials.

Michaels said Richards' behavior during the past 60 days "has not represented the city in a very good light." He figures that Richards, who is leaving the council in March because of term limits, is just disappointed over his lack of accomplishments during his tenure.

"I think Mr. Richards is just frustrated," Michaels said.

The ethics commission, a nine-member appointed panel, only investigates violations if someone files an official complaint. Punishment for failing to disclose gifts range from a written reprimand, removal from office or a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000, said Jones, the commission spokeswoman.

This is not the first time that Oldsmar council members have been questioned about disclosing gifts they've received.

On July 28, two weeks before the Florida League of Cities Convention, Sandler filed a disclosure form for a free stay at an oceanfront hotel in the Florida Keys. He was the guest of a local architect who later sought business with the city, but he didn't file the disclosure form until after the St. Petersburg Times asked him about the trip. Tilki and Manny also stayed free at the hotel, and Tilki filed a disclosure form on time. Manny said he couldn't remember whether his stay occurred before he was a council member.

"Always the problems with this kind of thing is lack of enforcement and someone checking to see if they submitted" disclosure forms, said Paulson, the USF professor. "You have to rely on the honesty and integrity of an elected official to turn these in."

- Staff writer Ed Quioco can be reached at (727) 445-4183 or at quioco@sptimes.com.