Ethics committee for St. Petersburg Council
Complaint filed over pay raises
By Morgan Landis
TAMPA BAY SUN
ST. PETERSBURG - A resident filed a complaint to the State of Florida's Commission on Ethics concerning the pay raise voted on at the Dec. 15, 2005 St. Petersburg City Council meeting. According to the complaint, this is a violation of the Sunshine Law Article II, Section 8 that states "Any public officer or employee who breaches the public trust for private gain and any person or entity inducing such breach shall be liable to the state for all financial benefits obtained by such actions. The manner of recovery and additional damages may be provided by
law."
The agenda for the Dec. 15 meeting has no mention of a pay raise. The addendums and deletions say nothing about a pay raise either. In fact, it was only after 10 hours after the meeting began, at almost 1 a.m. in the last meeting of that year, did the council members decide to raise the issue.
Council members voted unanimously to increase Mayor Rick Baker's salary from $113,644 to an even $150,000. Then decided after a 4-3 vote to raise their salaries 40% from $27,316 to $38,000. Originally, Councilwoman Rene Flowers suggested a salary of $44,420, but it was defeated by a 4-3 vote.
The complaint to the ethics committee is for all eight council members; William Foster, James Bennett, Rene Flowers, Earnest Williams, Richard Kriseman, Jay Lasita, Virginia Littrell and John Bryan. Although they all voted to increase the mayor's salary, only Bennett, Bryan, Flowers and Williams voted to increase their salaries. It is said Littrell left the meeting before the vote. Currently, Bennett, Flowers and Williams are still on the council; Bryan was serving until he committed suicide last month after news of an unrelated investigation was uncovered. The three members who were leaving office voted against the pay raise.
Any complaint to the ethics committee remains confidential until it reaches a procedural stage. Once a complaint has been made, the commission forwards a copy of the original to the accused within five days. It is then determined whether the allegations indicate a possible violation of any law over which the commission has jurisdiction. If the complaint is found not to be legally sufficient, it will be dismissed without investigation. If it is found to be correct, a preliminary investigation will begin.
Last, the commission will decide whether the law was actually violated and, if so, whether a penalty should be recommended. The accused has a right for a public hearing, and if convicted, the appropriate disciplinary action is recommended and a public report of its findings is issued
