Welcome to TBO.com. Skip directly to: our Keyword Search, Section Navigation, Content.

TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Hernando Today

Hernando Today > News

Coller's Contract Extended One Year

By MICHAEL D. BATES

Hernando Today

Published: October 22, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - Garth Coller will stay on as county attorney for at least another year.
County commissioners on Tuesday refused to take any action to settle the impasse over the attorney's contract, preferring instead to wait until after the election and the board has a better grasp on the ongoing government restructuring.
That means the terms of Coller's current contract will roll over, or extend one year until Feb. 1, 2010. He gets the same rate of pay: $132,829 a year (about $170,700 with benefits). He gets a five-month severance package in case he's fired. And he continues to get a $300 per month car allowance.
The vote was 4-1, with Chairman Chris Kingsley voting nay.
Kingsley was adamantly against the automatic rollover that gives Coller the same benefits. He also objected to allegations from Coller and some of his board colleagues that politics led to his decision to offer the attorney a one-year contract with a three-month severance package.
In this atmosphere of cost-cutting and streamlining, Kingsley said he was unwilling to extend the contract out any longer than one year.
Commissioner Jeff Stabins told Kingsley this was clearly political, especially since eight months ago the chairman helped negotiate a multi-year, five-month severance package for new County Administrator David Hamilton.
This contract renewal should have come before the board much earlier, Stabins said. "I think it's really regrettable," he said.
Commissioner Diane Rowden said it would not be fair to Coller or the taxpayers to vote on a new contract so soon before the Nov. 4 election, when there could be three new commissioners on the board.
"This should never have come up two weeks or a month before an election," she said.
Coller said he opposed a one-year contract because it didn't provide enough stability for himself, especially in such an unstable economy.
Coller also said a five-month severance package would give him needed time if he was forced to find new employment.
And cutting him down from a four- to a one-year pact sends the message that he is not doing a good job, said Coller, who pointed out the numerous positive evaluations he's received since becoming county attorney in 2000.
He said that typically, the county attorney's contract mirrors that of the county administrator.
"I see no reason to change what has been a winning formula for Hernando County," Coller said of the legal office.
Commissioners assured Coller that agreeing to a contract rollover does not mean they are displeased with his performance.