Battle of the bills: Clerk, commissioner at odds over cost of county work on private lot

Escambia County Clerk of Court and Comptroller Pam Childers says Escambia County Commissioner Lumon May owes more to the county for hauling tree debris off his private property and disposing of it than he was originally billed.

After reviewing additional information in the grand jury’s report of the county conducted clean-up of two lots owned by May and his family, Childers said the county spent several thousand dollars more in manpower and resources on the project than was reflected in the original work orders she received.

Earlier this month Childers sent May a bill for $4,253.74 to cover the government’s costs. Now Childers said May owes $7,412.76. In a letter to the commissioner dated July 23, Childers explained the invoice was revised based on findings in the Escambia County Grand Jury Report that was recently made public.

“Revisions were made to reflect three inmate work crews (four inmates per crew) working on the property on November 6, 2023, for five hours each to make a total of 60 inmate labor hours instead of twenty hours as stated on Work Order Number 23- 030269,” Childers wrote. “The Grand Jury Report stated that an additional correction officer was on the property on November 6, 2023, therefore five hours of his time has been added to the costs. The Grand Jury Report also stated more than eight truckloads of debris was removed from the property. The assessed cost has been updated to reflect this information.”

In a letter sent to Escambia County Attorney Alison Rogers on July 22, May’s attorney, Eric Stevenson, said the first invoice for $4, 253.74 is inaccurate because it’s based on “fraudulent” work orders. He said the bill doesn’t take into account that some of the county workers didn’t spend as much time on the cleanup as they claim according to county records tracking the equipment and crews involved. As for the revised invoice based on the additional information from the Grand Jury’s report, Stevenson said he questions that, too.

“If somebody continues to use unreliable numbers, I'm going to assume that all of their numbers are unreliable,” Stevenson said.

Previously: Escambia County crews cleaned up commissioner's private property. Who sent them to do it?

Last November, Escambia County District 3 Commissioner Lumon May said he hired people to trim trees and clear overgrowth on two vacant lots; one lot he owns at 1624 W. Yonge St. and the lot next to it belonging to his mother at 1628 W. Yonge St. May said he planned to clean up the debris left over from the clean-up on his private property, but before he had the chance, county and inmate work crews picked up the debris and hauled it off. In part, because he called the county administrator to address what was later found to be an unfounded complaint that the debris was blocking the road.

Over a two-day period, at least eight truckloads of material were removed and taken to the landfill. Most of the work was done by seven county employees and three inmate work crews, each consisting of a corrections officer and four inmates. A grand jury was convened last April to investigate the matter after an anonymous complaint was made that county crews and resources had been used to clear the debris off the commissioner’s privately owned property.

The grand jury found there was “insufficient evidence to establish that probable cause exists that a crime was committed,” and returned a No True Bill, meaning no indictment should be filed. The grand jurors determined the county conducted clean-up of the commissioner’s private property was the result of poor communication and misunderstandings between May and county staff.

Stevenson said May never intended for the county to haul off the debris and dispose of it.

Grand jurors made several recommendations in the report to avoid problems like this in the future, like updating the county’s ethics policy and verifying property ownership before sending work crews to a site. They also recommended May reimburse the county for the expense.

“Commissioner May has great respect for the Grand Jury and its work,” Stevenson wrote to Rogers. “While he does not believe he should have to pay the county for services he never requested, out of respect for the Grand Jury, and because he does not want there to be a perception that he has received a public benefit, he is willing to pay the county for the actual amount the county expended for removal of debris.”

Stevenson said the county is in a better position to “do a thorough and accurate investigation into what the actual costs were.” Childers said she won’t accept an adjusted bill unless there is supporting documentation. The most recent invoice reflects the additional time and labor of the inmate crews, a corrections officer and the eight truck loads of material that were hauled to the landfill.

Childers said May should have handled the clean-up of his personal property himself and hired someone else to do it. She added that the county commissioners should be held to a higher ethical standard because they are elected leaders and stewards of taxpayer dollars.

“The taxpayers are not Lumon May's personal first responders on his lot cleaning,” Childers said. “When he has a personal problem with his property while he is coaching football, our county resources should not be his first call. Now that this has come to light, I'm hearing this has been going on for years and it needs to stop.”

Stevenson denies claims that May has previously used county resources to work on his private and family-owned property. In the letter to the county attorney, he also said the commissioner’s record of service to the county is “unassailable.” He asked Rogers to send an invoice for the county’s work on the property within seven days with supporting documentation and that payment will be made within seven days of receiving that invoice.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Battle of the bills: Clerk, commissioner at odds over cost of county work on private lot