SEBRING — By accident, a routine financial audit of expenditures for the 9-1-1 emergency call system uncovered voluminous sexually explicit messages sent between three Highlands County employees in the budget department. The sexually explicit messages, all public-record documents open to public inspection, led to the firings Monday morning of: Treasa Handley, former coordinator of non ad-valorem assessments; Jared Lee, former budget analyst; and Christine Edwards, former budget technician. ...more

January 30, 2008

AVON PARK — Jeff Carlson, an incumbent who was expected to run for another term on the Sebring city council, pulled his name from consideration shortly before Friday's deadline. Carlson announced he intends to run for a seat with the Highlands County commission. All three incumbent commissioners qualified last week to seek re-election. A contested primary for county sheriff also became certain when Michael Rowan filed official papers to contest incumbent Susan Benton. ...more

January 20, 2008

Forget for a moment — if that's possible — all the presidential candidates offering us the world if we elect them to our country's highest office. Instead consider all the important offices here in Highlands County that will be decided in November. It's enough to get even a mild political junkie excited about who will run and who won't. All constitutional officers are up for re-election this campaign season. That means the sheriff, clerk of courts, tax assessor and tax collector are up for grabs. So is the school superintendent post, as well as county commission seats and school board positions. This is when we see some incredibly talented people take a risk and run for office. ...more

January 3, 2008

SEBRING — Luke Brooker isn't, but Bob Germaine is. The sheriff is, and so are all the other constitutional officers. Germaine called a press conference at 1 p.m. Wednesday to announce he'll seek the clerk of courts seat being vacated by Brooker. Germaine, 57, said if he's elected, he won't be a one-term clerk. He's been working in the office for 36 years and is Brooker's chief deputy on the criminal courts side. "I help people every day," Germaine said to the 20 people gathered in the supervisor of elections office when he announced. "I don't feel like I've done anything if I don't help someone." ...more

January 3, 2008

SEBRING — Highlands County voters will have lots of decisions to make in 2008. On Jan. 29, the primary will give Democrats and Republicans the opportunity to choose their presidential nominee. At the same time, voters can decide whether to lower their own taxes. The deadline to register to vote in the primary is Dec. 31, said Norma Stokes, assistant supervisor of elections. Early voting for the primary starts on Jan. 14. Voters can go to the libraries in Lake Placid and Avon Park, or at the Highlands County Government Center in Sebring. The last day to call for an absentee ballot to be mailed to the voter's home is Jan. 23, Stokes said. ...more

December 28, 2007

SEBRING — Highlands County Clerk of Courts Luke Brooker announced Friday morning that he would not seek re-election in 2008. According to Highlands County Courthouse Director of Court Services Bob Germaine, Brooker made the announcement during an employee of the year meeting, saying that he wants to focus on his family after his term expires in January 2009. "Luke's been here for a long time, and he's been an excellent boss," said Germaine. "I think it came down to wanting to be able to spend more time with his family. He wants to focus on his grandchildren and his health." Brooker, who has been elected to serve for four terms, could not be reached for comment Friday. Brooker originally took office in January 1993. He ran unopposed in 1996 and had opposition in 2000 and 2004. ...more

December 22, 2007

SEBRING — Public records and public meetings in Highlands County will soon be more open and more accessible than ever before. With an Internet connection and a few strokes on a keyboard, people can have instant access to virtually every piece of information the county has, plus verbatim accounts of county commission meetings. In about a month, new computer software acquired by the Highlands County Clerk of Courts Office – which handles both county government business and court records – will make more information available more quickly through the Internet. By going to the clerk's Web site, www.hcclerk.org, people will find verbatim accounts of every word spoken by every person during every minute of every Highlands County Board of Commissioners meeting. Those verbatim accounts, in fact, can be viewed on a computer in three ways: a video clip of the section of a meeting that you're interested in, a separate audio-only clip of that meeting segment, and/or an official transcript of that portion of the meeting's minutes. ...more

December 11, 2007

SEBRING — On Nov. 14, Bob Jamison became aware that the Local Government Investment Pool might be in jeopardy. ...more

December 9, 2007

SEBRING — The Highlands County Housing Department is known primarily for helping low- and moderate-income people reach the American dream of home ownership. ...more

October 25, 2007

TAMPA - Dozens of people, expecting the typical long waits and aggravation, showed up this morning for traffic court at the Floriland Business Center. For some, the closure of the facility last week due to a mold problem added to their aggravation. For others, it was a relief. ...more

September 10, 2007