SEBRING – The appeals of the firings of ex-county employees Treasa Handley and Jarod Lee will be heard by new Highlands County Administrator Michael Wright. But the informal hearing process won't be scheduled until after Handley's and Lee's attorney takes depositions from at least four and possibly more county employees. Attorney Jim McCollum, representing the two Office of Management and Budget employees who were fired for sending thousands of personal and inappropriate instant messages on their county computers, has not yet requested a hearing date. Their firings go back more than three months, but McCollum is not rushing to schedule the appeals hearing in front of Wright. Before any hearing is scheduled, McCollum said, he needs to get sworn statements in depositions from several high-ranking county managers and from one ex-county employee, Carl Cool. ...more

June 6, 2008

While Medicare, our national health care program for seniors, drowns in waste and inefficiency, some members of Congress want to throw a life preserver to the health care organizations that improperly bill the program for billions of dollars each year. ...more

February 13, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. – The Sheriff's Office sought to rev up support today to buy seven traffic patrol motorcycles with Penny for Pasco revenue. ...more

January 22, 2008

President Bush threatened Thursday to cancel thousands of pet projects that Congress inserted into a massive spending bill before leaving town this week, a move that could provoke a fierce battle with lawmakers in both parties who jealously guard their ability to steer money to favored purposes. ...more

December 21, 2007

SEBRING –– A special five-member interview committee will meet Dec. 20 at the Highlands County Government Annex Building to pick a replacement for former county Housing Director Penny Phillippi. The five county commissioners, who will act on the committee's recommendation, have the chance to promote from within the housing department to pick its new leader. Teresa Hofer, now the acting housing director since Phillippi's Dec. 1 departure, is one of the five candidates for the job. ...more

December 14, 2007

The Bush administration intends to slash counterterrorism funding for police, firefighters and rescue departments across the country by more than half next year, according to budget documents obtained by The Associated Press. ...more

December 1, 2007

Disabled people who rely on Pasco County's on-call paratransit service to get around will have to dig deeper to pay for rides. ...more

November 30, 2007

Sixteen months ago, a federal agency proposed slowing ships in certain East Coast waters to 10 knots or less during parts of the year to save the North Atlantic right whale, one of the world's most endangered marine mammals, from extinction. ...more

October 21, 2007

You can look at it either way. Marriages in New York City start with a $1 discount. Or, domestic partnerships are assessed a $1 tax. ...more

October 19, 2007

Pasco County hasn't had a good old Sheriff's Office budget battle in a number of years. ...more

September 10, 2007