Do you ever wonder how our county tax money is being spent
why the county is considering a proposed sales tax hike? For the answers I
would suggest that we look to Mike Brown, our Santa Barbara County chief executive
officer.
Recently, Brown was to report on the impacts of the gambling
industry being generated by the local casino. He requested a $100,000 budget to
perform this study. Six months later, he tried to change the focus of the study
from the effects of the local casino to an attack on the thoroughbred horse
breeding industry in the Santa Ynez Valley. Thankfully, as a result of
incompetence like this, many local community groups have formed in order to act
as a watchdog over the county. Because of the pressure created by these united
groups, Brown’s study now has been cancelled.
While the community is pleased that the report is canceled,
what about the thousands and thousands of dollars that Brown wasted on endless
research and staff reports in an attempt to change its focus from the casino to
the horse community? What about the countless hours that were wasted by the
community groups and other concerned community members, including me, in what
amounted to be a game of hide-and-seek to expose Brown’s true intent with this
study?
How about the reported expense of nearly $1 million that our
county paid out in order to settle a sexual harassment law-suit against Brown?
Let’s now add this to the current law suit, filed on May 18, 2007, by a former
county public defender, for discrimination, harassment, retaliation, assault,
battery, breach of contract and negligent misrepresentation.
I think Brown has cost the tax payers of Santa Barbara
County enough, and it is time for the board of supervisors to “re-evaluate”
their relationship with him. I also think it is unfair for the county, which is
now considering a sales tax hike to pass the burden of its mismanagement-prone
CEO back onto its citizen’s pocket-books. We need the board of supervisors to
take back ownership of the responsibilities to which they were elected and to
stop turning a blind eye to what has happened since he was empowered to Mike
Brown to manage the county – or should I say mismanage.
What do you think?
For a copy of the law-suit filed against the County of Santa
Barbara and Mike Brown on May 18, 2007, you may contact the Superior Court of
the State of California for the County of Santa Barbara, case # 1245056.