Did Any Port Orange Administrators defraud the Governement ?
Talking about a wanton disregard for taxpayer funds that might be of interest to Ted and other citizen watchdogs, and could be the subject of a future F.O.I., here is one for the record. As you may already know, when someone resigns from a position, as opposed to being fired or layed off they are not eligible for unemployment compensation. When someone files for unemployment compensation, the unemployment bureau will contact the previous employer to verify the circumstances under which the employee that has filed for benefits left their previous employment.
If you remember the past public utility director, Jason Yarborough who resigned his position with the City of Port Orange this past year he is now, compliments of the FCCMA the interim Administrative Manager for the City of Lake Helen Florida. For the short period of time that Jason was an FCCMA MIT (Manage In Transition) he apparently applied for complementary unemployment benefits even though he officially resigned from his previous position with the City of Port Orange as Public Utility Director. When I say complementary benefits, I mean benefits compliments of someone in the Administrative Services Department of the City of Port Orange that supplied Jason with corroborative information to the Bureau of Unemployment that resulted in Mr. Yarborough receiving over a thousand dollars worth of unemployment benefit compliments of the taxpayers of Port Orange.
Remember that unemployment benefits are not paid out to individuals that have resigned from their previous position so it would be interesting what was told the Bureau of Unemployment Compensation by Port Orange Administrative Services and by what authority was anything communicated to them other than Mr. Yarborough had voluntarily resigned his services with the city of Port Orange. If anything other than this was in fact communicated to the Unemployment Bureau I wonder if this would constitute defrauding the government, as well as defrauding the taxpayers. I am certain that this information is available through F.O.I. request through the Bureau of Unemployment and also through the City Of Port Orange.
Whoever authorized information being released to the Unemployment Office and whoever is in charge of Administrative Services that is responsible for any communication other than about Jason Yarborough resigning from his previous position that resulted in fraudulent benefits being paid to him at the taxpayers expense may have committed a crime.
Should this be whitewashed and swept under the rug as usual, or is this serious enough to perform the requisite F.O.I.’s to determine if their is any justification for taxpayers having to foot the bill for these benefits which may have been obtained fraudulently with the cooperation of Port Orange administrative staff?
I’m not surprised, that department has a certain staff member that constantly makes mistakes and nothing is ever done to correct their actions…
I wonder why Councilman Ford thought it would be ok to have dinner with Firefighters Union Leadership while they are currently negotiating a new contract? Not that it would look bad and could be perceived as unethical? Equally questionable is Vice Mayor Bastian’s constant visits to the fire stations. Funny that he doesn’t visit fire administration. Hmmmm…
I have heard that the firefighters union has both Bastian and Ford in their hands. Great for the tax payers to have two on council who don’t have the city’s best interest in mind.
By my count the the Fire and Police unions have 3 votes in the bag, because Stilrner is going to prove to be the biggest union hack of them all. He has already gone back on his word since he was elected.
What has your comment got to do with the above???
Knows All the Dirt . . . exactly what I was thinking. It is a shame that this blog has just about lost all of it’s credibility and value. At one point it seemed as though there was some constructive benefit to many of these posts and comments. I guess all good things do come to an end.
Hey Open Minded maybe its time to change your name to: NOT Open Minded
It seems you are a fan of censorship. I have family that still live in China * we all take freedom of speech here in the USA for granted but do not appreciate it
Will any of the advocates ask B. Ford about his meeting with union officials prior to the shade meeting and during negotiations? I don’t think so but if the mayor or D. Burnette did this it would be a major case at the next council meeting. If you want open government, it has to open to everyone.
If he resigned under duress such as being forced to resign then he could in fact be eligible for benefits. I am pretty sure though that Greg Kisela summoned about 8 or 10 middle management public utility employees to the city manager chambers to announce that Mr. Yarborough voluntarily turned in his resignation, and that he, Kisela lamented him doing so. I am also pretty sure that Kisela announced this to city officials as a voluntary resignation, so at least that was the official version at that time. I am not sure what administrative services told the State Unemployment Bureau and whether or not it was fraudulent. It should be pretty easy to check out by getting a statement from administrative services as to what they communicated to the State Unemployment Bureau, contact the State Unemployment Bureau to see if that was what they in fact communicated, and then see if this information is the same as the version Kisela disclosed. That is if Port Orange city officials have not already permitted city management to communicate fraudulent information to the State Unemployment Bureau and assuming our elected officials are not expecting taxpayers to pay unemployment benefits to Mr. Yarborough after his voluntary resignation.
Don’t you realize that this is a brotherhood agreement that all FCCMA Hacks have with fellow administrators and city officials. They never get fired! They never officially get asked to leave! They always get a golden parachute! They also always get recycled somewhere else and we get the recycled garbage called an FCCMA MIT from some other organization where someone officially resigned in good standing while collecting unemployment while in transition and so it goes adinfinitum adnauseum.This is the way of the private club of FCCMA and Florida League of Cities Hacks. You wonder why our elected officials never get it and allow their city managers to indefinitely perpetuate this losing management philosophy.
From: Ted Noftall [mailto:Ted@tednoftall.com]
Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2015 11:09 AM
To: ‘Fenwick, Robin’; Donna Steinbac (dsteinebac@port-orange.org); Margaret Roberts (mroberts@port-orange.org)
Cc: Bob Ford (rford37@cfl.rr.com); don@amlsfl.com; Drew Bastian (db2070@cfl.rr.com); Mayor Green (agreen@port-orange.org); Scott Stiltner (sjstiltner@cfl.rr.com)
Subject: Yarborough Resignation FOIA
@ Robin and Donna,
Blog comments below indicating specific, and likely insider information, while not 100% factually correct as regards unemployment insurance law, do raise several allegations of possible improprieties that cannot go un-examined.
Accordingly pursuant to Florida public records statutes I would like to examine:
*) Jason Yarborough’s official resignation or termination as documented in his personnel file including any letters, comments, reprimands or recommendations. etc. and the dates there off.
*) Any communication and the dates there off, that the City received or exchanged with the Florida Division of Unemployment regarding any application for unemployment insurance benefits submitted by Yarborough including the name of the person(s) supplying or approving the contents of those communications.
@ Margaret,
Several recent instances prompt me to remind you that your office needs to more closely instruct City Departments and City Contractors to comply fully with all public records requests BECAUSE as you are aware any failure or inability of the Clerk to provide public records of a timely basis places the City in the same legal jeopardy you cautioned Council about last spring when you strongly implored them to impose onerous e-mail requirements on their volunteer board members so as to forestall legal action against the City for failure to comply with State law regarding public records. If that advice was good enough for the goose it is certainly good enough for the gander.
Thank you
Ted Noftall
for responsible government – 2016
May We Arrange to Meet Regarding Public Utilities Director Jason Yarborough
incoming / April 11, 2014
PBAFrom: Vince Champion [mailto:vchampion@cfpba.us]
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2014 3:59 PM
To: Kisela, Greg
Subject: Meeting Request
Dear Mr. Kisela –
I am writing to see if we may arrange to meet regarding Public Utilities Director Jason Yarborough. Recent events in the Public Utilities Department have caused our association concern, as they have affected our members in adverse ways. Making it more of a concern is the fact that Mr. Yarborough resigned abruptly in Palm Bay at the conclusion of a lengthy internal investigation over similar concerns, just a few years ago. I will be happy to provide you with documentation supporting this.
Mr. Kisela, in an effort to serve our members who work in your city, my staff and I would very much like the chance to discuss this further at your convenience.
Vincent L. Champion, President
386-304-2393 * 800-625-5451
386-788-2126 – facsimile
e-mail – vchampion@cfpba
NEW ASSIGNMENT AFTER PORT ORANGE’S COMPLIMENTARY UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS COMPLIMENTS OF PORT ORANGE’S FAVORITE MANAGEMENT POOL THE FCCMA!
City Departments of Lake Helen
DEPARTMENT CONTACT PHONE
Administrator Jason Yarborough (interim) 386-228-2121
Building Department (Permits) Becky Witte 386-228-2358
Business Tax Becky Witte 386-228-2358
City Attorney Scott E. Simpson, PA 386-228-2121
City Clerk Becky Witte 386-228-2358
Code Enforcement Officer Patrick Clarino 386-228-2145
Facilities Rentals City Hall 386-228-2121
Finance Michael Wright
Mary Ann Douglas 386-228-2121
Human Resources Michael Wright 386-228-2121
Library 386-228-1152
Market in the Park Karen Garyantes 305-393-0682
Planning Jason Yarborough (interim) 386-228-2121
Police Chief Mike Walker 386-228-2145
Post Office 386-228-2227
Public Works Rick Mullen 386-228-0963
Water Billing Sharon Hull 386-228-2121
Water Utilities Rick Mullen 386-228-0963
Are we starting to see a pattern here?
Can You Draw Unemployment If You Quit Your Job
By: Dachary Carey
Can you draw unemployment if you quit your job? Under most circumstances, people who quit voluntarily aren’t eligible for unemployment benefits. However, some states do offer unemployment to people who quit under certain criteria, so you might be eligible to draw unemployment even if you quit.
You can’t draw unemployment if you quit under normal circumstances.
Under normal circumstances, you can’t draw unemployment if you quit. You may be eligible for unemployment only if you quit because of a situation that your employer caused. You typically can’t draw unemployment if you quit because:
•You don’t like your job;
•You don’t like your hours;
•You don’t get along with your co-workers;
•You aren’t happy with the pay;
•You can’t arrange for child care;
•You have transportation issues;
•You didn’t get a promotion or raise.
You may be eligible for unemployment if you quit because of “good cause.”
Some states offer unemployment benefits to people who quit because of “good cause.” Unfortunately, “good cause” is a somewhat arbitrary designation. Generally speaking, if the employer did something, or failed to do something, that caused you to quit, and you were unsuccessful in attempting to resolve it with the employer, you may be eligible for unemployment benefits. This includes things like:
•Your employer drastically reducing your hours;
•Sexual harassment;
•A hostile work environment or abusive behavior;
•A drastic and negative change in work conditions.
In order to be eligible for unemployment benefits under these circumstances, you must have made an effort to address the issue with your employer before you quit. If the employer refused to address your concerns, you may be able to qualify for unemployment.
Quitting for personal reasons.
Some states also offer unemployment benefits if you leave under other circumstances, such as leaving for personal reasons. These circumstances are few and far between, and most personal reasons don’t qualify you for unemployment benefits. Examples of personal reasons that may qualify you for unemployment include:
•Leaving for health reasons;
•Leaving to become a caretaker;
•Leaving for union reasons.
Contact your state’s employment office.
Ultimately, unemployment benefit eligibility is administered on a state-to-state basis, and varies, sometimes significantly, depending on your state. Consult your state’s rules before you quit in order to determine whether or not you may be eligible for benefits. You can find out your state’s rules on unemployment by contacting the Department of Labor for your state. Even if your quitting is covered under your state’s employment laws, you typically still have to attend a hearing before a judge in order to receive your unemployment benefits, so be prepared.
Member-in-Transition Profiles
The following FCCMA members are currently in transition. Please take a minute to show your support by either emailing or phoning the MITs in your district. A phone call or an email can go a long way to help someone who is temporarily out of work. You can also help if you have any job opportunities or special projects available for which one of our MITs may be qualified.
With the current technology, the project could even be done from the MIT’s home. FCCMA staff has many of their resumes. Please contact Carol Russell at crussell@flcities.com if you need a current resume for one of our MITs. Also, please keep your FCCMA staff informed of any FCCMA members who may be eligible for MIT status. You can email Lynn Lovallo at llovallo@flcities.com or Carol Russell at crussell@flcities.com.
Member-in-Transition Profiles
Mike Bonfield
District VII – Former Manager of St. Pete Beach
(727) 501-2415
mbonfield@tampabay.rr.com
Stephen J. Cottrell
District VII
(727) 487-3763
stcottrell@gmail.com
James D. Drumm
District VII – Former Manager of Zephyrhills
(352) 226-6533
jdrumm825@aol.com
J. Douglas Drymon
District VIII – Former Assistant City Manager of Winter Haven
(352) 682-8878
jddrymon@comcast.net
Ricky G. Helms
District VI – Former Administrator of Highlands County
(863) 443-1508
rgbhelms@embarqmail.com
Markae Rupp
District VI – Former Manager of Arcadia
(321) 258-5783
recmngt@gmail.com
Ken Sauer
District IV – Former Manager of Haines City
(863) 216-9532
ken.c.sauer@gmail.com
John Schneiger
District VII – Former Manager of New Port Richey
(727) 510-9799
schneigerj@gmail.com
Terrance Stewart
District VI – Former Manager of Fort Myers Beach
(239) 233-7453
Terry_stewart49@hotmail.com
Kathleen Weiser
District IV
Former Manager of Highland Beach
(941) 875-4915
Blueeyes523@hotmail.com
William R. Whitson
District I – Former CRA Director of Panama City
(386) 846-0687
wwwhitson@aol.com
Jason Yarborough
District I – Former Public Utilities Director of Port Orange
(321) 305-1708
yarborough.jason@gmail.com
These guys are recycled more than an aluminum can.
Stay tuned for the next absurdity Andrew Neff.