For county chief, a contract at last

Fred Marquis plans to retire, and commissioners fear they would have trouble hiring a replacement without a contract.

By EDIE GROSS

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 8, 2000

CLEARWATER -- On any given Tuesday during the last 22 years, three of the five Pinellas County commissioners could have turned to Fred Marquis, one of the longest-serving county administrators in Florida, and fired him on the spot.

Like most other administrators, he serves at the pleasure of an elected council or commission.

But unlike most of his colleagues around the nation, Marquis has had no employment contract. Had he been fired during a weekly commission meeting, he would not have received a dime in severance pay.

"I joked, "I have an extensive contract with the board. It runs for one week,' " said Marquis, who plans to retire in August or September. "My golden parachute would happen to be whatever vacation and sick leave I happened to have on that day."

None of the 24 county commissioners Marquis has worked for ever thought to create a contract for him, and Marquis never wanted one. But the current board feared it might be difficult to attract a replacement administrator without a contract.

So on Tuesday, they approved a bare-bones version, laying out the administrator's salary, term of service and severance package. They did the same for county attorney Susan Churuti, who also has never had a contract.

Commissioners say the details of the administrator's contract will be renegotiated once a new person is hired. But just having the paper on file may help bring talented applicants forward, Commissioner Bob Stewart said.

"We would never be able to attract anyone under the terms that Fred has worked here under," Stewart said. "In any week, three commissioners could say, "We need a change in leadership. We need a new administrator.' "

The contract approved Tuesday creates a three-year term of office for the administrator, who would get a severance package worth six months of salary if fired. Marquis' salary is $129,775.

Marquis' week-to-week, contract-free arrangement with the Pinellas County Commission is a rarity.

Of the 719 local government managers who responded to a 1995 nationwide survey by the International City/County Management Association, nearly 80 percent said they had a contract or letter of agreement, said association spokeswoman Michele Frisby.

The contracts for Hillsborough County Administrator Dan Kleman, Hernando County Administrator Paul McIntosh and Pasco County Administrator John Gallagher touch on everything from salaries and severance packages to moving expenses and car allowances.

"It's a good thing to have everything in writing," said Ken Small, auditing and special projects manager for the Florida League of Cities. "The problem isn't so much with the people who hire you. You're exactly what they wanted. It's down the road. It's what happens the next election or two elections later."

Marquis said he never worried about such things. In fact, he was a little disappointed when the commission approved the new contract. He had often boasted to other administrators that he served without a safety net.

"I've always said you can't do the job without the full faith of the board. You can't hide behind a contract. A contract doesn't give that to you," he said. "It's been a source of pride for me to have been here as long as I have without all this."

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