Pat Bean keeps job, but given 'short rope'

Pat Bean will continue as Hillsborough County administrator, but she will finish out the last two years of her contract on what County Commissioner Kevin White termed a "short rope."

White and five other board members defeated a motion today by Commissioner Mark Sharpe to fire Bean. Sharpe, Bean's harshest critic on the board, had proposed letting a coalition of assistant county administrators run the county while the commission conducted a nationwide search for Bean's replacement.

Bean has been in hot water since June when board members learned she gave top aides large pay raises late last year as the county was entering a fiscal crisis. Several months later, it came to light that Bean had approved a 1 percent pay raise for herself in 2007. She faces two state investigations over the pay raise.

Sharpe said Bean has failed in other respects, such as resisting suggestions that she try new management tools and seek advice from outside agencies in dealing with the county's $140 million deficit this year.

"I would think when we're facing what we face, you'd want to do that," Sharpe said. "In fact what I got was a lot of resistance and an indication you would resign if I made you work with this person or this process," Sharpe said. "The heart's just not there."

But other commissioners, while critical of Bean's actions during the past year, were not ready to fire her. Several of them complimented Bean for assembling a competent management team and for strong fiscal management that resulted in the county's AAA bond rating.

"There are a lot of right things going on with this county," Commissioner Al Higginbotham said.

A common theme was that the board had failed to give Bean clear guidance on what they expected from her. Kevin Beckner, the newest commissioner, said the administrator's evaluation form was antiquated and vague on measurable objectives.

"The question is, 'What were we expecting Ms. Bean to do over the last year,'" Beckner said.

White said he had been ready Wednesday morning to support the termination motion he knew Sharpe would make. But he changed his mind, he said, in part because of Bean's obvious passion to make Hillsborough one of the best local governments in the country.

'I think once you're given clear and accurate direction from this board you either have an opportunity to chart that course or waver and deviate from that course," White said. "We haven't always agreed. I will extend latitude in this particular instance."

Commissioner Rose Ferlita, who has in the past expressed the desire that Bean leave, said Wednesday she thought the administrator could improve with more accountability.

Ferlita made a motion, supported by the rest of the board, to conduct Bean's evaluation quarterly instead of annually. Commissioners also approved Beckner's recommendation that Bean bring a "vision" statement on Jan. 22 with clearly defined goals and measurable objectives.

"I want to know you're not here for the next two years just to hang out until retirement," Beckner said. "I want you to be able to come back to us and say, 'You know, this is what I can provide for an organization like this ... I want to see a work plan.'"

Bean said after the meeting she had no problems with the new requirements but stressed that a vision for the county's future must come first from its elected leaders, not her.

"They're in charge of local government for the whole county and they need to set the direction," Bean said. "It's critically important for them that they set the vision; it's not my job to set the vision."