Corruption Watch: Mexico Beach (this last week)
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July 28, 2023 - Consultant explains Mexico Beach's $100 million FEMA disaster funding.
July 26, 2023 - Watch the City Councilmen squirm when Councilwoman Linda Hamilton and Mayor Michele Miller push for a forensic audit in Mexico Beach.
July 26, 2023 - Former Mayor of Mexico Beach Al Cathey made public comments at yesterday's budget meeting. He demands to know why new Mayor Michele Miller said that the City is in a financial crisis.
Under former Mayor Al Cathey, the City received about $100 million in FEMA money since Hurricane Michael.
During that time, former City Administrators Mario Gisbert and Doug Baber managed the finances. Councilman Adrian Welle was the City Clerk.
They all insist that the City is doing great financially.
But they've prevented the new Mayor from seeing detailed transaction statements. She wants to see all of the invoices, check registers, and credit card receipts. All of which are public records.
The three Councilmen tell Mayor Miller that she should just rely on financial reports provided to her by the City Administrator or other staff members.
Since Mayor Miller took office in April, the accountant and City Administrator abruptly resigned. The City is late on its annual audit. And bank records haven't been reconciled in two months.
Meanwhile, Councilman Welle has spearheaded a protest along with Councilmen Jerry Smith and Richard Wolff against Mayor Miller as she asserts responsibility as the City's CFO. Two of them walked out of a meeting and went on strike until their demands were met.
The City Charter designates the Mayor as "the chief elected administrative and fiscal officer of the City."
Councilman Welle pretends the language is vague and insists that all four members of the Council are also "the chief elected administrative and fiscal officer of the City."
Councilman Welle says that it's impossible to misappropriate FEMA money because it's reimbursed and approved by FEMA.
At the same time he makes this assertion, former Lynn Haven City Manager Michael White and contractor Mickey White began serving prison time for defrauding the City of FEMA money.
Former Mayor Al Cathey owns Ace Hardware in Mexico Beach. Councilman Adrian Welle is the treasurer for a nonprofit called 4our Seasuns Disaster Relief Inc., which began 12 days after Hurricane Michael. He also owns an LLC called 4our Seasuns. Former City Administrator Doug Baber started a nonprofit called Local Government Specialists Inc.
Will invoices show City or FEMA money going to any of these nonprofits or businesses? And if so, will it be appropriate, ethical, and legal?
More to follow ...
July 24, 2023 - Is this a new trend? Politicians walking out in protest like Adrian Welle, the Mexico Beach City Councilman?
Councilman Welle is the treasurer for a nonprofit called 4our Seasuns Disaster Relief, which began 12 days after Hurricane Michael. He owns a company called 4our Seasuns as well.
He says he supports a forensic audit for the City, which received around $100 million in FEMA money.
Councilman Welle says it's impossible to misappropriate FEMA money because it's reimbursed and goes through a vigorous approval process.
At the same time he makes these claims, former Lynn Haven City Manager Michael White and contractor Mickey White went to prison for stealing FEMA money. And he says it with a straight face.
Councilman Welle has led the effort to prevent new Mayor Michele Miller from seeing the City's detailed transaction statements.
Ever since voters elected Michele Miller in April, City officials have been panic-stricken. The accountant and City Administrator Doug Baber both abruptly resigned.
Councilman Welle lies to the public about the City Charter by reading only part of a sentence. He says the Charter gives all powers to the City Council but leaves out "except as otherwise provided by law or by this charter."
The Charter designates the Mayor as "the chief elected administrative and fiscal official of the City."
Councilmen Jerry Smith says it'd be "a bad liability" to give Mayor Miller (the CFO) full read-only access to the City's financial records.
Vice Mayor Richard Wolff still can't believe that the media can record the meetings, shouts "weak mayor," and pounds the table.
City Attorney Clint McCahill says that the Mayor has no additional duties compared to the other council members.
But last year, he wrote an ordinance that pays the Mayor a higher salary based on being "the chief elected administrative and fiscal official for the City." McCahill changed his opinion three months ago, after longtime Mayor Al Cathey lost the election.
The City is late on its annual audit, and the situation spirals every week. There's a municipal crisis at hand, and the three councilmen continue their ever-present threat to walk out and go on strike if the City's detailed financial statements are revealed.
Why won't they show the check register and credit card receipts? Why are they hiding the invoices? All of these are public records.
Meanwhile WMBB-TV pretends this is normal, and all law-enforcement officials are playing Three Blind Mice.
