What to know in Manatee: Major oil spill costs, Bishop named Manatee County administrator

The culprit in the SeaPort Manatee oil spill mystery could be on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars, and commissioners named Charlie Bishop as Manatee County's new county administrator during a Tuesday meeting filled with contested matters.

Commissioners also voted to implement a resolution indicating the county would not fund nonprofits affiliated with Planned Parenthood or other abortion providers and a takeover of operations of a historical resources department that has operated for decades under the Manatee County Clerk of Court and Comptroller's Office.

SeaPort Manatee oil spill cleanup has cost $825,000

Officials said the cleanup effort from an oil spill at SeaPort Manatee is 99% complete, but the source remains a question as an investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg continues. The culprit could be on the hook for the $825,000 cleanup cost, according to Coast Guard officials.

More: Authorities take to the lab after no one lays claim to SeaPort Manatee oil spill

"The source of the contamination has not been identified at this point by the Coast Guard. That will take a while," Director Carlos Buqueras said Tuesday. "As you know they are conducting, if you would, the equivalent of 'DNA' tests on the fuel they found and comparing them to ships and sources that were at the port… There will be additional follow-up actions to correct that problem and to take appropriate legal action against the companies that caused this spill."

Acting as the SeaPort Manatee Port Authority Board, commissioners voted to name James Satcher as chairman of the authority over George Kruse.

The meeting broke down after the decision as commissioners Jason Bearden and Kruse argued about communication from the port in response to the incident.

Kruse has also split from his peers often this year on major votes on controversial matters, including issues such as wetlands protections, other comprehensive plan issues and several development projects.

Bishop tapped as permanent county administrator

Charlie Bishop has been named as Manatee County's new permanent county administrator, after acting in the role on an interim basis.

"Charlie Bishop got a little bit of an unfair advantage when he got the best job interview you could ask for," Chairman Kevin Van Ostenbridge said. "For a period of time, he had the job. I was very impressed with the way he conducted himself, with the way he ran the county, with the way staff responded to him, with the way my fellow commissioners responded to him. He even got to lead us through a hurricane."

In case you missed it: What to know in Manatee: skepticism on wetland protection; surprise county admin candidate

Earlier in the meeting, commissioners voted to appoint Bryan Parnell as the county's second deputy administrator. Parnell is a Navy veteran with more than 20 years of experience in engineering and management.

Bishop will make hiring decisions moving forward. His contract is still under negotiation.

No county funding for nonprofits affiliated with Planned Parenthood

Commissioners approved a resolution indicating no county funding will be granted to nonprofits affiliated with Planned Parenthood or any other abortion provider.

"This has nothing to do with abortion," Women's Voices of SW Florida founder Kate Danehy-Samitz said at the meeting. "Commissioner Satcher wants attention. We saw this two years ago with the failed pursuit of installing a six-week abortion ban that was another nonissue here in Manatee County."

"There is no active provider here in Manatee County," Danehy-Samitz said. "These healthcare services, the funding that you're looking to cut, it actually goes to education on consensual relationships... pregnancy prevention resources, treatments for sexually transmitted infections, breast health services, and life-saving cancer screenings."

Kruse was the lone nay vote. Commissioner Amanda Ballard, the only woman on the board, defended the resolution and indicated that there are similar services available through the Florida Department of Health.

"We also have free access to FDA-approved birth control methods and supplies," she said. "Abstinence counseling information education is available on a sliding fee schedule. There's pregnancy testing, there's counseling, there's screening for hypertension, breast and cervical cancer, for sexually transmitted diseases including HIV counseling and testing. Also for health promotion as well as disease prevention."

Historical resources become political

Commissioners voted to move the Historical Resources Department out from under the care of the Manatee County Clerk and Comptrollers Office to instead operate under the Manatee County government.

The board approved the plan with a 6 to 1 vote, with Kruse casting the sole vote in opposition. The affected facilities include the Manatee County Agricultural Museum, Manatee Village Historical Park, Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez, Manatee County Historical Records Library, and the Palmetto Historical Park.

Former longtime Director Cathy Slusser said in a statement the department was moved to the clerk's office in 1983 at the request of the Manatee County Historical Commission. About 15 local residents spoke against the change on Tuesday, many of them affiliated with the groups that have contributed to and managed the county's historical records, museums, buildings, artifacts, and properties for years. Slusser submitted her statements in writing because she could not be among them in person on Tuesday.

"Most of it is stemming from resentment by one or more county commissioners," Slussler wrote.

Satcher confirmed Tuesday that the discussion over the matter swirled after the office published an audit that uncovered that Manatee County Chairman Kevin Van Ostenbridge used public funds to purchase an email list and voter data information for District 3 residents for a community newsletter managed by his aide.

Commissioners have also raised issues over a case where a Georgia man defrauded the county of nearly $1.4 million by posing as a Neal Land and Communities representative and intercepting a wire transfer from the clerk's office.

"People have asked multiple times, where did this come from?" Satcher said at the meeting. "Behind the scenes, I've had conversations about this discussion and about this decision myself and it came after complete frustration. Not looking for a fight, or looking for a problem, it came after complete frustration with the clerk and some of the decisions and some of the actions."

Clerk of Court Angelina Colonneso did not speak during the meeting. When reached for comment, her office said she learned about the matter after it was published on the county agenda after-hours on Friday.

"We were as surprised as everyone else when this appeared on the agenda late Friday night," Colonneso said. "At this time, there’s been no communication by the county with my office."

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Major oil spill costs, and Bishop named Manatee County administrator