Comments on: Taxpayer-Funded Vehicles Face Increased Scrutiny. To Wit:

By: DaddyOfPayton

DaddyOfPayton — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:37:05 +0000

Hmm, so you know us all?

Nope, but apparently at least 90% of you.

By: Rob P

Rob P — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 16:59:46 +0000

Well, Alachua County is home to the University of Florida, one of the largest state schools in Florida, so, they’re not exactly starved for cash. UF has made that two-horse garbage town into a psuedo-metropolis with many too many people living there than really should be.

Secondly, Sexton is a scumbag, just like any other government official, running over trannys not withstanding.

By: Robert Farago

Robert Farago — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 15:58:29 +0000

Headline amended.

By: ZoomZoom

ZoomZoom — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 15:58:27 +0000

Why should any government entity even be in the business of buying cars? Seems to me that this opens the door for personal (mis)use scandals.

william442 Says:

As a long time resident, I assure you that at least 90% of Florida residents are nuts.

Hmm, so you know us all?

By: william442

william442 — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 13:30:28 +0000

As a long time resident, I assure you that at least 90% of Florida residents are nuts.

By: Robert Farago

Robert Farago — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:44:47 +0000

ihatetrees:

It’s not THAT weird. However, I think this deserves a WTF subject classification.

Done.

With a bit more info (e.g. what was Sexton doing in Miami on Christmas Eve and is it just a coincidence that he bumped into a transvestite?), I’m sure there’s a CH tale to be told.

By: ihatetrees

ihatetrees — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 21:34:08 +0000

And no, this is not the plot of a Carl Hiassen novel.

It’s not THAT weird. However, I think this deserves a WTF subject classification.

By: Gregzilla

Gregzilla — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 21:31:22 +0000

James2 Says:
July 12th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
I’m surprised no one –until now– has commented that a part-time gig is worth $50-60K. This county must be overflowing with tax revenues

The University of Florida is in Alachua county…quite a source of revenue.

This makes me proud to be a Floridian. Never a dull moment….

By: James2

James2 — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 21:26:51 +0000

I’m surprised no one –until now– has commented that a part-time gig is worth $50-60K. This county must be overflowing with tax revenues.

By: yankinwaoz

yankinwaoz — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 19:33:30 +0000

Actually the insurance company for the car is responsible for defending the driver. If the County is self-insured, then the County responsible.

It doesn’t sound like they required staff to buy their own insurance to drive a County car on personal time. Therefore the County was insuring the car at ALL times. Sounds pretty cut-n-dry to me.

Now, there is another issue, which is the use of County cars for personal use. If that was a job perk, then that is fine. But it sounds like the County is trying to have it both ways. They want to give staff a car perk, but they want to pretend they really didn’t do so.

The fact is, they did. So they need to suck up and take responsibility.

By: 50merc

50merc — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 15:42:19 +0000

It’d be nice if the newspaper pursued this story. There’s enough in the article to show the county manager is presiding over a mess.

The county administrative manual says “As stewards of the public trust, all County employees must use the powers and resources of the County entrusted to them by the public to further the public interest, and not for personal gain or benefit.”

Obviously, the insiders aren’t worried about that policy. But there’s another player: the IRS, where “free” doesn’t mean “non-taxable.” As the vehicle use policy says, “County employees that [they mean "who"] are provided the use of a County vehicle as a component of employment compensation will be required to comply with this policy to ensure Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rules are observed with uniformity.” The Risk Manager director is supposed to review vehicle usage.

So a reporter should be asking: Where are the vehicle use logs? What do the logs show? What amount of personal use shows up on employees’ W-2 forms? Has the county failed to properly report compensation? Has the county failed to properly withhold taxes on pay? Are employees vulnerable to charges of underreporting income?

Gainesville Sun, here’s your chance at a Pulitzer.

By: Andy D

Andy D — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 14:54:04 +0000

No, but I betcha Hiaasen is taking notes. I read his stuff as fast as it is published. I dont really care for Florida’s climate or topography, but I read lots of books set in FL
I home garage my work van. I would be in deep doo-doo if I ran over a transvestite on Xmas Eve with it. It is strictly verboten to drive it for personal use.