Saying they have created a culture that is "toxic" and "dysfunctional, Hillsborough County Commission Chair Ken Hagan is calling for County Administrator Pat Bean, County Attorney Renee Lee, and Internal Auditor Jim Barnes to resign by next Tuesday, March 16 by noon. If they do not, he writes, he will ask and "encourage" the full board of County Commissioners to "terminate their employment" the following day.
Hagen made the request public in a letter distributed this afternoon.
It's a bold move by the Chairman in anticipation of a meeting called to discuss the issue of Barnes audit tomorrow, which says that Bean and Lee reviewed thousands of e-mails written by Barnes and his staff regarding how the two came about giving themselves a 1% pay hike back in 2007. E-mails are public records, but because the FDLE was already investigating that event, they are exempt from Sunshine laws.
In his letter, Hagan writes:
Perhaps, if this latest information from the auditor's report was an isolated issue, I would be less vehement; however, that is not the case. And therefore, today, I am compelled to advocate both swift and immediate action to return the County to its proper course. It is my firm belief that these issues may only be effectively addressed by sweeping change in the staff leadership of Hillsborough County.
This article appears in Mar 3-9, 2010.