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Stew Lilker’s

Columbia County Observer

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Columbia County News

County 5 Reaching Deep Into Taxpayer's Pockets: $434,876 unbudgeted ready for the rubber stamp

Kirby recommends 37% pay raise for employee who has given 2 week notice

COLUMBIA COUNTY, FL – The legendary Columbia County 5 (The 5), Florida's infamous good ole' boy, backroom rubber stamp, never saw a deal we couldn't make, Board of County Commissioners is up to its old tricks. Tonight at 5:30 pm, The 5 will demonstrate to Tallahassee and the US Congress that when it comes to moving money around, taking care of their friends and picking the public's pockets, The 5 are the act to beat.

This evening, The 5 continues a month long run of racking up record setting unbudgeted expenditures. On tonight's agenda is at least another $434,876.

Not all County workers wondering about a raise

While The 5 has left all County workers wondering whether they will ever see a real salary study or raise and many wondering if they will ever see a living wage and not be forced to apply for food stamps to feed their families, hidden in tonight's consent agenda is a slick little item from the $92,000 plus County Engineer, Chad Williams.

County Engineer Williams, with the approval of Public Works Director Kevin Kirby, who recently saw his salary go to $120k plus, is recommending that Public Works employee Robert Domingue should get a salary stipend so that he doesn't take a job somewhere else. Mr. Domingue has already submitted his two week notice.

It's not a raise – It's a stipend

The recommendation: Give Mr. Domingue a 37% pay raise; hide it on the consent agenda; call it a stipend.

$1,639,034: In the past 4 weeks The 5 has rubber stamped over $1.5 million of unbudgeted funds

On November 21, The 5 reached into the pockets of the County's taxpayers for $658,634, giving $200,000 to the School District for a softball field and approving a new waste water treatment plant which will cost $700,000 plus. The public was not invited to comment. That ended during the reign of terror.

In explaining the new waste water treatment plant, County Manager Dale Williams reverted to The 5's bucket economics, which is never budgeting for anything and just putting taxpayer money in buckets (funds) all over. When the County needs money, The 5 authorizes a bucket transfer.

In order to come up with a $250,000 shortfall for the new proposed waste water treatment plant, County Manager Williams saw "little need" in going to the state revolving loan fund. Instead, CM Williams advised The 5 to tap one of the County buckets. He said, "Loan the utility $250,000 with the understanding and maybe even knowing you may not ever get it repaid."

The 5 won't repay the loan and the taxpayers will be none the wiser as they continue to subsidize the County's money losing ($300,000 per year) Ellisville Utility that now has 5 customers after 7 years of planning and building.

November 7th: $980,400

On November 7th, The 5 slammed the County's taxpayers for at least $980,400 in rubber stamped unbudgeted expenditures, with almost a million dollars going to Anderson Columbia for The 5's Big Dig, the Bascom Norris Bypass.

This Big Dig rubber stamp – sleight of hand should be investigated by the State Attorney.

The 5: planning ahead for the next taxpayer attack

On tonight's agenda is a public hearing and resolution which is designed to allow The 5 to slam the County taxpayers next year with a new assessment for street lighting and stormwater.

The 5, in order to take care of its friends, does not believe in establishing Municipal Service Benefit Units, which enables the County to charge the folks that benefit from limited and specific county improvements to pay for them.

The 5 is looking, at among other things, taking over the maintenance of various retention ponds in subdivisions and having folks all over the County pay for the upkeep that benefits a few.

Epilogue

The Columbia County 5 continues to set the standard for unaccountability; picking the taxpayer's pockets; and accounting practices which challenge the imagination.

The 5 – The training ground for Tallahassee and Washington.

 

The Columbia County 5 from left to right: Commissioners Ronald Williams; Rusty DePratter; Bucky Nash; Stephen Bailey; Scarlet Frisina

Comments  (to add a comment go here)

Posted on Dec. 8, 2013, citizen 49a from Lake City, wrote:

1. In order to come up with a $250,000 shortfall for the new proposed waste water treatment plant, County Manager Williams saw "little need" in going to the state revolving loan fund. Instead, CM Williams advised The 5 to tap one of the County buckets. He said, "Loan the utility $250,000 with the understanding and maybe even knowing you may not ever get it repaid."

OK, now correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't this amount to the County Manager advising the Commissioners to commit fraud and theft?  I know those are pretty strong words, and you may not want to print them, but when you knowingly and intentionally misappropriate public funds  by lying, what is that called?  And when you loan public funds knowing that they will not be paid back what is that called?  Not that anyone would ever enforce them, but aren't there laws against these things?

The truly amazing thing is that these people comfortably do all this in public and as a matter of public record. No one in the so-called "law enforcement" "community" lifts a finger or says a word to stop them.

Reflect for a moment on what must be going on behind closed doors, if this is going on in broad daylight in front of everyone.

But who's surprised? The so-called "president" does what ever he wants and just ignores the law. Why can't the Commissioners and the County Manager do the same?

 

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