County Boss To Register For Class

County Administrator David Hamilton said he will pay the $2,628 for his online university course work out of his own pocket.

He said he's registering this week and the tuition must be paid.

However, should county commissioners decide to keep the county's current policy on tuition reimbursement, Hamilton said he expects to be reimbursed for part of his expenses - a perk open to any government employee.

"All I'm asking to be is treated like every other employee," Hamilton said.

Currently, the county has five board employees enrolled in the county's tuition reimbursement program, which allows participants to recoup a maximum $1,166.40 on costs, as long as the course work has a direct bearing on their scope of work.

Of those five, three are pursuing a bachelor's degree, one an associate's degree and one a master's degree, according to the Hernando County Human resources Department.

Commissioners on Tuesday, citing the need to cut back on expenses, referred the tuition program to its newly created budget and finance committee for review.

The committee is expected to make a recommendation in March, with board discussion to follow, likely in April.

Hamilton's reimbursement came up during Tuesday's county commission meeting.

The administrator said he decided to air it publically because of his insistence in government transparency. And Hamilton said he had to present it to the board because the tuition request required the approval of his bosses, the commissioners.

Ultimately, Hamilton said he doesn't care whether commissioners decide to scrap the program or reduce the amount of tuition that can be reimbursed.

And maybe, with the economy in such a mess, it's time to take a closer look at the program, he said.

"If this is what it took to prompt the review then all the better," Hamilton said.

Hamilton said whatever the decision is, he plans to continue pursuing his studies because he believes it will help him with his job.

Hamilton is pursuing a doctorate of public administration he began five years ago.

He was forced to take a break from his studies when he moved to Hernando County in March 2008 to begin his new job.

To that end, he took advantage of the county's tuition reimbursement program and enrolled in online courses from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minn.

At Tuesday's meeting, county commissioners learned that Hamilton's tuition expense came to $2,628 for four credit hours of course work.