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Monday, November 25, 2024
REMEMBER THE GREEDIEST! Anastasia Mosquito Control District of St. Johns County Votes Themselves Bonuses. (My November 24, 2024 e-mail)
Dear St. Johns County residents:
Four (4) misguided, ill-advised Anastasia Mosquito Control District of St. Johns County Commissioners voted themselves an illegal pay raise, disguised as a "$1000 CHRISTMAS BONUS," violating F.S. 388.141(2).
I think Mosquito Control Commissioners should do the honorable thing> they should vote to rescind the vote and to return the money they wrongfully voted to pocket for themselves.
The 27th Amendment to the United States Constitution, proposed by James Madison, became effective 202 years later, bans any Congressional pay raises until after the next election.
Our local Mosquito Control District broke the law by voting themselves $1000 bonuses, exceeding the $4800/year pay cap in Florida mosquito control law, F.S. 388.141(2).
Thank you for your support in the November 5, 2024 nonpartisan election for Mosquito Control. Honored to receive some 55,560 votes (nearly 37.8%).
What's next?
Please read my November 24, 2024 e-mail to AMCD and other officials, state and federal law enforcement, et al.
Update: 8:07 AM, November 25, 2024: The District's attorney agrees that there is no law allowing for the $1000 bonus. Commissioner Martha Gleason has informed the District that she will move to rescind the illegal Commissioner bonuses.
On Sunday, November 24, 2024 at 09:53:02 AM EST, Ed Slavin <easlavin@aol.com> wrote:
Dear elected Anastasia Mosquito Control District of St. Johns County Commissioners (AMCD), Dr, Xue, Dr. Qualls, Mr. Weaver, et al.:
1. Would AMCD please be so kind as to send me all documents on the etiology of the 4-0 vote for bonuses for Mosquito Control Board Commissioners, including any factual, legal or ethics research on bonuses, any legal or accounting analysis of the bonuses (e.g., breaching the mandatory pay cap, and any empirical or factual research about jurisdictions where Commissioners voted to give themselves $1000 Christmas bonuses?
2. Commissioner Martha Gleason was absent, which was excused, due to her suffering from bronchitis attack on November 21. Yet four inconsiderate, other-directed Commissioners refused to honor her requests, and those of Commissioner-elect T.J. Mazzotta and me to pause consideration of this and several other items until the December meeting. This was deeply insensitive and morally wrong, excluding Commissioner Gleason from three of of the norms of collegial bodies *comity, courtesy and consideration," depriving her of her rights as an elected official.
3. Thus, I hereby ask Commissioners, at their December meeting, to rescind the $1000 bonuses that four ill-advised Commissioners voted for themselves.
4. I hereby request that Commissioners return their $1000 bonuses to AMCD instanter.
5. By copy of this e-mail, I am alerting Governor DeSantis, who has legal authority to remove AMCD Commissioners pursuant to Article IV, Section 8 of our Florida Constitution (a constituional power that AMCD Commissioners voted to ask him to use when one AMCD Commissioner, Catherine Brandhorst (who missed dozens of meetings, while being paid $500/month ($400 salary and $100 expenses) I have also shared this e-mail with the 7th Circuit State's Attorney, Statewide Prosecutor, FDLE, FBI and Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and its General Counsel and Inspector General.
6. On November 21, 2024, Mosquito Control Commissioner Brandhorst was a fierce proponent of the $1000 bonus, claiming she was underpaid. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaMHz0_Jouo
7. This illegal $1000 Commissioner bonus is redolent of chutzpa and the arrogance of power..
8. Enough flummery, dupery and nincompoopery from the wasteful Anastasia Mosquito Control District of St. Johns County.
9. The facts are undisputed: this bonus was intended as a not-so-subtle concealed pay raise for our AMCD Commissioners. Watch the video.
10. On March 8, 2007, Florida's Attorney General opined on Florida Mosquito Control Commissioner compensation, stating it is limited to $4800 per year, plus expenses. See opinion, below.
11. DR. XUE, COMMISSIONERS: I AM DISAPPOINTED IN THE SHALLOW, CALLOW APPROACH TO "MANAGEMENT" TAKEN BY AMCD, WHOSE CURRENT DIRECTOR IS CHAIR OF AMERICAN MOSQUITO CONTROL ASSOCIATION (DR. XUE) AND WHOSE CURRENT BUSINESS MANAGER IS CHAIR OF THE FLORIDA MOSQUITO CONTROL ASSOCIATION (RICHARD WEAVER).
12. THIS SUBTLE CORRUPTION OF OUR MOSQUITO CONTROL DISTRICT BY COMMISSIONERS IS INDEFENSIBLE, AND MUST BE ENDED AT ONCE. IT'S OUR MONEY.
13. While our Anastasia Mosquito Control Commissioners of St. Johns County Ccommissioners were so hurriedly voting themselves illegal compensation, AMCD Board Meeting November 21, 2024they failed and refused to honor the AMCD resolution barring any more spending on the Mosquito Museum, already suffering from 36% cost overruns due to lax oversight of contractors, while Commissioners refused to seek arbitration on the contracts (having already waived in contracts the District's 7th Amendment right to civil jury trial, which the late Justice William Rehnquist called "a bulwark against oppression."
Ms. Jeanne E. Brooker, Chair Collier Mosquito Control District 600 North Road Naples, Florida 34104-3464
Dear Ms. Brooker:
On behalf of the Collier Mosquito Control District you have requested our assistance in determining how to apply section 388.141(2), Florida Statutes. According to your letter a commissioner of the mosquito control district was recently elected to serve as a commissioner of a fire control district. The terms of office of these two districts overlapped by approximately six weeks. The commissioner was paid a salary by both the mosquito control district and the fire control district in violation of section 388.141(2), Florida Statutes. There is now a question as to which district should be reimbursed the amount of the salary paid to the commissioner.
Chapter 388, Florida Statutes, governs the operation of mosquito control districts established prior to July 1, 1980. (Section 388.021, Fla. Stat. On or after July 1, 1980, mosquito control districts are to be created pursuant to s. 125.01, Fla. Stat.) A review of the history of the Collier Mosquito Control District (district) shows that it was created as an independent special tax district as a result of a referendum in 1950. (See 50th Anniversary Historical Narrative, Collier Mosquito Control District, found at "www.collier-mosquito.org.") A board of commissioners, each elected for a four-year term, possesses the power and duty to carry out the district's purpose to control and eliminate all species of mosquitoes. (See ss. 388.101, 388.161 - 388.191, Fla. Stat.)
Compensation of the board's members is set statutorily. Section 388.141(1), Florida Statutes, states:
"Members of the board of commissioners of independent special tax districts may each be paid a salary to be determined by the unanimous vote of the board which shall not exceed $4,800 for each commissioner during any one year; however, this section shall not be construed to limit compensation of district commissioners where higher amounts have otherwise been authorized by special act or general act of local application. Said members may be reimbursed for expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as provided in s. 112.061." (Section 112.061, Fla. Stat., sets forth a uniform plan for per diem and reimbursement of expenses for travel or public officers, employees and persons authorized to incur such expenses on behalf of a public entity.)
Clearly, the statute recognizes that a mosquito control district commissioner is entitled to a limited salary and reimbursement of expenses incurred in the performance of his or her duties.
Section 388.141(2), Florida Statutes, provides a specific limitation for mosquito control district board members receiving compensation from more then one district:
"No board member of a mosquito control district shall receive compensation except for per diem and travel expenses authorized pursuant to s. 112.061, for serving on more than one special district board in this state. All special districts, regardless of the existence of other specific provisions of law, shall comply with this subsection."
It appears that the Legislature intended for the salary of a board member of a mosquito control district to be the sole compensation made to that commissioner.
While the statute does not provide direction as to how a commissioner should deal with accidental multiple compensation payments, it would appear to be appropriate for the board member to return all funds paid outside the scope of section 388.141, Florida Statutes, that is, to return compensation from any special district other than the mosquito control district. For the period of time that the commissioner was a board member of the mosquito control district, he or she was limited by section 388.141, to receiving compensation only from that district.
I trust that these informal suggestions will prove helpful to you in addressing this issue. This informal advisory opinion is provided to you by the staff of the Opinions Division in an effort to assist you. The conclusions herein are those of the writer and do not constitute a formal Attorney General's Opinion.
Sincerely,
Gerry Hammond Senior Assistant Attorney General
GH/t
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On Friday, November 22, 2024 at 05:05:40 PM EST, Ed Slavin <easlavin@aol.com> wrote:
Dear Dr. Xue:
Please send the attorney RFP responses and staff analysis. Please answer prior requests.
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