CRESTVIEW — Councilman Joe Blocker says his constituents want to know exactly how much the city spends on attorneys’ fees, and demand the council sign off on city attorney Jerry Miller’s bills.
At Monday’s council meeting, he went a step further and recommended terminating Miller’s contract.
“I’ve been contacted daily by residents of our city with interest in making legal fees an open part of our city,” Blocker said at the Feb. 9 council meeting.
Miller said all city invoices, including attorneys’ fees, are public records readily available from City Clerk Betsy Roy’s office.
OFF AND ON
The topic was listed on Monday night’s council meeting agenda but was removed by Blocker because he said he had not received needed information in time. Monday night, he endeavored to return it to the agenda but encountered procedural difficulties.
A super-majority — or four of the five council members’ votes — is required to add an agenda item after the agenda is published.
Blocker’s motion failed on a 3-2 vote, with council members Tom Gordon and Robyn Helt voting nay, but Blocker was permitted to read from a prepared statement.
“I believe it is in the best interest of the taxpayers of Crestview that we consider terminating the contract with Mr. Miller’s law firm immediately,” Blocker said.
Council President Shannon Hayes told Blocker that the contract cannot be terminated, but could be renegotiated or a new request for proposals for legal services could be issued.
“As far as terminating, that is not within the power of us to do that,” Hayes said.
‘DISTINCT MISUNDERSTANDING’
“There seems to be a very distinct misunderstanding how contracts within the city operate and how invoices should be paid or appear,” Helt said.
“When we pay PAWS (the Panhandle Animal Welfare Society) or we pay anyone else, are those detailed invoices shown on our consent agenda? No. Is the city operating under some type of conspiracy because that’s not happening? No! Let’s just get on about doing business and not get into conspiracy theories when they don’t exist.”
Hayes said if Blocker wished to pursue the matter further, he could return it to the agenda for the March 9 meeting.
At the council’s Nov. 10, 2014, meeting, Blocker proposed requiring all city invoices be approved by the City Council. After Helt called the proposal “ridiculous,” Blocker moved to require just Miller’s invoices be approved by the body.
That motion failed without a second.
Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Councilman calls for termination of city attorney's contract (VIDEO)