RE: Anastasia Mosquito Control District (AMCD): 25 Proposals for Reform for Consideration By New AMCD Board of Directors

RE: Anastasia Mosquito Control District (AMCD):
25 Proposals for Reform for Consideration By New AMCD Board of Directors

Dear Dr. Xue:

Thank you again for inviting Ms. Robin E. Nadeau, Ms. Ann L Palmquist and me to the December 19 meeting that you requested with you and District staff. We appreciate your candid answers and the tour of the District Headquarters.

Also, thank you for your gracious invitation to teach and speak to District employees and to Florida mosquito control experts, which I have accepted.

Please relay my congratulations to three new Board members (Ms. Jeanne Moeller, Mr. John Sundeman and Ms. Linda Wampler).

Inspired by our candid discussions on December 19, would you please be so kind as to place the following 25 items on the agenda for the next Board meeting (January 11)? I request to make a 15 minute presentation on the need for these 25 items:

1. Workshops on reforming longstanding District policies, procedures and practices, including workshops on natural pesticides (e.g., minnows, frogs and bats); employee concerns; employee rights; employee compensation; workers' compensation; employee work for other governmental entities outside the busy season; aircraft and property acquisition policies; epidemiological and environmental impact studies; fish, wildlife, butterfly, firefly, dragonfly, frog and bee protection and restoration; and systematic review of every single AMCD policy, practice and procedure, with an eye toward assuring transparency, environmental protection, safety precautions, heeding employee and public concerns, openness, candor, accountability, fiscal frugality and meaningful public participation.

2. Cholinesterase monitoring and health assessment for all past and present employees.

3. Voluntary compliance with all OSHA standards and improved environmental safety and health compliance.

4. Appointment of an environmental, health and safety director to assure compliance with all applicable environmental, safety and health standards, with direct report to Board and the duty to assure that our environment, safety and health are protected. The District must heed Director Xue's safety leadership (in banning the wearing of shorts while spraying pesticides and banning employees from washing their pesticide-exposed uniforms at home). The District must learn, grow and foster and encourage a "safety culture" that will become permanent, one where employees don't r fear to ask questions or report problems. Our Anastasia Mosquito Control District must become a an example for other mosquito control districts and governmental entities.

5. Appointment of an Ombuds for employees and citizens, with direct report to Board, encouraging citizen and employee participation in formation and implementation of Board policies. AMCD must become worker-friendly, citizen-friendly and environmentally-friendly.

6. Employee Concerns Program and Employee Rights Policy to protect and cherish employee rights to raise concerns about environmental, safety, health, worker rights and other matters, to assure what our U.S. Supreme Court calls the "free flow of information." Oppressive tropes and phrases from large organizations (such as "chain of command" and "team player" and "troublemaker") must be banished. A culture of openness and candor must be created. Employee concerns must be respected and not neglected. Candor from employees will empower the Director and Board members to do their jobs better, fully complying with environmental, health, safety and other laws and principles. District employees must be encouraged to speak out and to raise concerns to assure environment, safety and health protection. The scientific method must be respected by allowing every voice to be heard, so people can express their concerns without fear or favor. Employees must receive training and encouragement on employee rights, including environmental whistleblower rights to raise environmental concerns to Board members, news media and regulatory agencies.

7. Diversity, EEO and Affirmative Action policy improvements to insure that women, African-Americans, persons with disabilities and other national, ethnic, religious and other minority and protected groups are fairly treated as applicants, employees and residents. Concerns of West Augustine residents must be acted upon regarding their community allegedly not receiving adequate mosquito spraying. Environmental justice concerns must be heeded.

8. Environmental impact studies on effects of pesticide applications on fish, wildlife, frogs, bees, butterflies, fireflies, dragonflies, groundwater and aquifer, 1948-date, obtaining the assistance of universities to study pesticide effects.

9. Environmental restoration to remedy past pollution by pesticides, to document and to publicize past spills, accidents and pesticide levels, and to clean them up; and to plant butterfly-, bee-, dragonfly-, firefly- and frog-friendly plants to remedy the effects of pesticide spraying.

10. Epidemiological studies re: everyone who has worked for District, to determine if District's actions have contributed to employee cancers and deaths and to St. Johns County infant mortality or cancer mortality.

11. Review of environmental laws and principles and ethical responsibilities of District regarding contaminated lands and spills and handling of pesticides.

12. Transparency policy -- live cable/low power TV/satellite TV coverage of AMCD meetings, workshops, symposia and colloquia, along with website posting of Material Safety Data Sheets, contracts, bid, budget and environmental information on AMCD website, along with all Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and Invitations for Bid (IFBs). The City of Orlando, St. Johns County and St. Johns River Water Management District are three good examples of how websites can be improved to inform citizens of government actions. Governor-elect Charles Crist has announced that, upon his inauguration, he will be establishing an Office of Government Openness, headed by Ms. Pat Gleason. Governor Crist and Ms. Gleason cano can help advise and encourage our AMCD's efforts in assuring open government.

13. Revision of EEO policies to require nondiscrimination on basis of employee exercise of First Amendment, workplace free speech (whistleblower) rights, sexual orientation, filing workers' compensation claim and prohibition of any form of discrimination or retaliation.

14. Reform of purchasing and personal services contracts procedures.

15. Reform of conflict of interest disclosures for auditors, attorneys and other contractors and improvement of policies regarding environmental, safety, health, transparency, anti-nepotism and competitive bidding requirements and principles.

16. Establishing performance standards and evaluations for the District's attorneys and auditors (including requiring that attorneys conducting investigations take notes and record interviews and that the District never again be a party to a contract where the same attorney represents the District as any lessor, vender, beneficiary, or other party-at-interest).

17. Rescission or sale of $1.8 million Bell Helicopter contract (with no competitive bidding, flyoff, scientific data or specifications).

18. Exploration of legal and equitable remedies re: $1.2 million land purchase without appraisal or environmental testing).

19. Reform of budgeting process to institute Zero-Based Budgeting.

20. A truly independent environmental and management audit to identify any and all waste, fraud, abuse, lack of competition in purchasing, misfeasance, malfeasance, nonfeasance, pollution, toxic exposures and (upon receipt of the management.

21. Fairly balanced standing advisory committees of environmental scientists, citizens and environmentalists, inspired by the principles of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), to advise the Board on all policies, procedures and practices, 1948-date.

22. Upon receipt and reading of the truly independent management and environmental audit, public discussion and debate of whether to create an independent Inspector General.

23. District-wide policy review on a continuing and systematic basis, inspired by information from citizens, employees, the Employee Concerns Program, Ombuds, E,S&H Director, the truly independent management and environmental audit, fairly balanced advisory committees.

24. Policy statement that persons speaking before the Board must be treated with dignity, respect and consideration and that public, press and Director questions must be answered promptly at the same meeting unless actual statistical compilation is required, re-emphasizing that there are no arbitrary limits on time for speakers (as AMCD counsel Mr. Geoffrey Dobson informed me on December 14, 2006). .

25. Encouragement of public participation in Board decision-making and policymaking (including the adoption of proposed items 1-24 above), including realigning Board agendas to provide for public comments at both the beginning and end of the meeting.

Thank you.

Best wishes to you, all District employees, present and future Board members, counsel, auditor and others for an open, democratic, transparent, environmentally responsible and productive New Year.

With kindest regards, I am,
Sincerely yours,
Ed
Ed Slavin
www.cleanupcityofstaugustine.blogspot.com
Box 3084
St. Augustine, Florida 32085-3084
904-471-7023
904-471-9918 (fax)