In an email recovered by Tallahassee Reports through a records request for city commissioner emails, City Commissioner Nancy Miller refused to meet with the ethics team that is pushing to establish more authority for the city’s Independent Ethics Board.
The statement by Commissioner Miller came in response to a meeting request from Peter Butzin.
Miller’s response:
“I hope you and Sally are having a great vacation. Hopefully safe from weather events! Yes we can sit down to chat, but I’m agreeing to meet with you, not the entire ethics team, and that agreement is based on our longtime relationship and my respect for all you and Sally do for this community and beyond.”
See email below.
It appears not only is Miller refusing to meet with the ethics team, but she is only meeting with Peter Buztin based on “our longtime relationship.”
The ethics team referred to in the email consist of Butzin, Ben Wilcox, Marlyn Wills and Catherine Baer. This group has been monitoring the activities of the city’s Ethics Board since the Board’s creation by referendum in 2014.
The ethics team has recently met with a number of city commissioners and, based on news reports, these meetings resulted in Commissioner Ziffer asking for a city workshop on how to address the issues with the current ethics ordinance.
Ms. Miller goes on to say that she is concerned about the establishment of rules that result in “requirements so limiting and undefined that most people who do business in Tallahassee become simply ineligible to take on the responsibility of elected office.”
Commissioner Miller then went on to defend her position:
“In my case, my main sin, if you will, is that in 2008 I married a longtime city employee, who by the way I don’t (at home or at work) control or supervise.”
What Commissioner Miller failed to mention were issues that involved the hiring of her step-son and the contracts awarded to her brother-in-law after she was elected.
The city’s auditor recently launched an investigation into the contracts issue.
Commissioner Nancy Miller Refuses to Meet With “Ethics Team” added by Staff on
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She feeds at the endless trough for these greedy politicians. Her arrogance is startling even for this backwater town. Why in a town like ours, do we continue to elect and kiss the arses of these crooked pols we keep electing here? No one touches Gillum because he is AA, just like Marks and the story goes on. I think the latest FBI inquiry has some of our better known pols quietly cooperating to avoid jail.
You have a point!
Nancy Miller is a fine, admirable person. Trying to get elected with this type of tripe is going to backfire on you Bill. I am surprised that you would engage in this type of stuff.
And Killearn HOA person, get a different lawyer, unless there are more facts that you have not disclosed.
Very deceptive reporting. Millers e-mail is to her friend apparently responding to HIS request for a meeting. I see nothing that establishes the committee requested a meeting. I would prefer seeing the initial e-mail to her before passing judgement. Knee jerk reactions help no one.
Just the fact that she has a “longtime relationship” with the folks who are overseeing the Ethics board is appalling. She is personal friends with the folks that are supposed to be policing her ethical behavior?
When I served on the Home Owners Board of Killearn Estate as President a few years ago, I had to have my elderly Mother fired her lawn care company because they also did business for Killearn Home Owners Association. I had to do this in order to comply with Federal Law, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on the legal opinion of our Attorneys. This was required in order not to have any conflicts of interest and not run afoul of the law.
I suggest that the City Attorney or the Ethics Board use the federal law, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, as a guide to govern the City Commissioners conduct and have them follow the same conflict of interest rules that the rest of us must follow.
I do not understand how Mrs. Miller is allow to do the things she has been alleged to do. Maybe if I got my Widowed Mother to do a Nancy Miller, and marry the lawn boy, I could have then been exempted from this part of the law.
Nancy Miller refuses to answer questions as did Rocky Hanna. Rocky Hanna and his associates set out to destroy the former Superintendent and nobody asked the hard questions. Rocky Hanna acknowledged he new of no wrongdoing and not one person held him accountable for his false statements. He dated teachers he supervised, he had to be sued for child support, he flushed drugs down the toilet of his school and everyone was and is silent. He called administrators during the campaign and threatened them, he has run people out of the system and yet nobody holds him accountable. This must be the Tallahassee way.
Jackie Pons, get off this board, you lost. Hannah is a douche but he won.
Lol! That’s a good one.
Very good questions!
The good ole boy/girl network is alive and well in the Democratic party.
Where have you gone, Martha Barnett?
Tallahasseans need you more than you will know,
Whoa, whoa whoa…
Let not your hearts be troubled esteemed members of the ethics board.
About 3-4 years into her 15 year Federal prison sentence our little darling “Queen Nancy Better Than Thou” will be eager to meet with anyone who still remembers her.
Memo to Ethics Board: Everyone set your Microsoft Office Calendar’s with a 3-4 year pop-up reminder to set up a meeting with our little darling “Queen Nancy Better Than Thou” in Federal prison. I’m sure she will be quite happy to meet with us at that time.
Another vexing problem resolved by Snydley.
How is one OUT OF TOWN TILL THE 12TH OF October WHEN YOU ARE AT THE COMMISSION MEETING THE OTHER NIGHT BY MY COUNT THAT IS 23 DAYS. must be nice
By her response, Commissioner Miller has exhibited her lack of understanding of basic ethics concepts and proceedings. There is no one who does business with the city who would be “ineligible to take on the responsibility of elected office” if they conduct them self in an ethical manner while in office.
Not voting on issues involving family and publicly announcing the conflict is the ethical way. Not using the elected position to influence or coerce hiring or contractual decisions is the ethical way. Not using their elected position to get gifts from anyone, any business or city contractor is the ethical way Commissioner. Any citizen can serve and can always do the ethical thing, but they have to try. You may have to oppose the recommendations of city staff on occasion, not always just let them tell you how to vote.
Working to help strengthen the city ethics code is the right thing to do.
How arrogant! An independent ethics board, as approved by the voters, should have subpoena powers to compel certain testimony.
And “most people (are) ineligible to take on the responsibility of elected office.” Really, Nancy? Everyone is eligible. You’re nothing special.
you might want to reread that quote; she is saying the opposite.