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Escambia County Asking DeSantis To Investigate If Doug Underhill Remains Qualified To Serve
July 20, 2022
Escambia County is asking Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Office to investigate if District Commissioner Doug Underhill remains qualified to hold office after selling his home in District 2 and purchasing property in District 5.
“Upon information and belief, Commissioner Douglas Underhill no longer resides in the district he was elected to represent. The official records reflect that his residence was sold in 2022, and he purchased a property in another district in 2021,” the letter signed by Commissioner Chairman Jeff Bergosh states.
Underhill sold his Perdido Key home earlier this year. Redistricting moved the home from District 2 to District 1, but the law allows him to remain in office through the end of his term — if he lives in District 2. In 2021, Underhill purchased a District 5 property in North Escambia, just over a mile from Atmore.
“Underhill has vacated the grandfathered residence and now resides in a different district of Escambia County,” according to the letter to the governor.
A screenshot provided to Bergosh of a July 7 Facebook post with free furniture and other items posted by Underhill’s wife stated that they had two days remaining to clear everything off their Sally-damaged property “before the buyer takes possession”.
“So we sold and rent back until I’m done with my service. None of this is news, and if you are worried about this more than our budget you suck and you are why Escambia County sucks,” Underhill wrote on Facebook Tuesday night in another post cited by Bergosh,
“It seen incongruent. It seems inconsistent. So I think we need to get to the bottom of it based upon citizen complaints,” Bergosh said during a Tuesday morning commission meeting.
“Guys, do what you want to do. I certainly look forward to an investigation from Tallahassee into what is clearly more of the pattern of retribution against me whistleblowing on y’all’s 401(a) thing,” Underhill said.
“I don’t take the 401(a),” Bergosh interjected.
“I know you don’t, but you certainly supported what these guys are doing,” Underhill replied to Bergosh. “In my opinion, it’s theft, and I whistle blew on it.”
The commission currently has a lawsuit pending over a 401(a) annuity plan the county contends is legal for local for elected officials and senior management. It does not cost taxpayers anything beyond a typical FRS plan.
“Redistricting me out of my district, taking me off all of the committees, all of the other things we’ve done. The censure, that little foray we had,” Underhill continued. “All of those are really the same kind of pattern of retribution for what I did for outing this issue for the 401(a).”
In reference to the Facebook post stating the family needed items out of the home for the new buyer in two days, Underhill told Bergosh that “is none of your business”.
“The matter is very clear…but if y’all want to do this, let’s send it to Tallahassee; let’s have that discussion,” Underhill said. “Gentlemen, do as you wish. It really makes no difference.”
Underhill gathered his things and walked out of the meeting during the motion and 4-0 vote. It was the last item on the agenda for the day, and the meeting concluded less than a minute later.
Comments
25 Responses to “Escambia County Asking DeSantis To Investigate If Doug Underhill Remains Qualified To Serve”
special district the jail to make it include all 5 districts ; that would solve the house packing and district residence requirement problems .
2 or 3 decades back all the commissioners were in jail ; wake up call .
I would like to have the Governor to investigate the entire County Commissioners.
Governor Bush investigate them all found proof of the underhanded deals George Touart, County Administrator and other county commisioners & fired them. During his tenure he presided over the soccer complex corruption scandal and the resulting removal from office of several County Commissioners, as well as the County’s reconstruction efforts following Hurricane Ivan. He has also been at the center of a number of controversies, including those leading to before he could resign. But after Bush left office, the county commissioners voted him back in so he coulld get his retirement.
I wanted to say some trashy stuff about Bergosh. Really, I did. Aside from college in Tampa, I’ve lived my whole life here and never seen any major political action aside from building the Wahoo’s Stadium (meanwhile the Civic Center continues to slowly die…).
One of the other commenters made a good point though– we need to vote, not merely talk about it!
Words are wind– especially from the career politicians! I want a representative that doesn’t cloak themselves from the public (I mean is visible to the community and actually takes a clear stand on issues instead of forever equivocating) and is an actual servant to us, don’t you too? We’re not choosing these folks to determine who is gonna get rich off their seat then retire to a lobbying firm, or other kickback– they’re there to do what we tell them!
@ John & Jason: With open primaries, what is the point of having individual parties? If you don’t want to identify as part of a certain party, why should you have a say in who that party elects? Open primaries make no sense to me unless it is for people to try sabotage the other party which is obviously wrong and dubious.
@ Jason. Jason, we would still do better with open primaries. Alan McMillain would have won big in 2018 if Florida was a state that held open primaries.
@ Bill T
Like your thinking!
@ CG. I agree 100%!!!
CG, please take a class in civics and also do a bit of research. I guess you would be happy with the president being elected by the will of voters in just a few states.
I think now is the time to show people power!!!! Everyone that wants thes people out need to vote them out !!!!I really have nothing to say about these county commissioners other than they all need to be replaced now !!! Clean the slate get rid of all of them because we know exactly what they are about and believe me it has nothing to do with the public interest!!! I think their motto is all for me and to hell with you!!! Yeah that’s it !!!!
Politics is a dirty job. Poor guy getting picked on for what he calls whistleblowing. Did he meet with another elected official and discuss county business? Or did he place an anonymous call about a legal pension plan? We might not like it but its legal. Shine a little Sunshine on that. Mr Clean had his Commissioner’s Aide run against Bergosh. Didn’t work out and wasn’t forgotten. Retirement plan cost to tax payers is less than defending lawsuits. When clown removes his make-up he is still clown.
I feel we should do away with the closed Primary, do away with all parties, do away with the Electoral College and just vote for the person that the voters think will do the best job. So if a candidate is running for President (for example) there will be no running mate. The one with the most votes is President and the one with the 2nd most votes would be Vice-President. Same goes for Governor and any other position that needs a running mate. If a person is elected for a certain district then that person needs to reside in that district till their term is up. Don’t police officers have to live in the area that they serve? And this one will really get under a few peoples skin but I feel there should be no religion in any political areas.
The highschool politics never end.
@John … .Underhill was elected in 2014 after defeating Gene Valentino in the primary and defeating a Democrat opponent (Deb Moore) who went unchallenged in her primary. .
Underhill was re-elected in 2018 after defeating Alan McMillan in the Republican primary and then defeating a Democrat challenger (Scott Trotter) who went unchallenged in his primary.
While I am not a fan of Underhill, it would seem he did pretty well against all challengers. If a Democrat wants to vote in the Republican primary all they need to do is change their registration. Otherwise, Democrats pick their own challengers just as Republicans should be the one to pick their preferred candidate.
I am happy Underhill isnt running this election, I also believe there should be term limits for Commissioners. I assure you, it wouldnt hurt my feelings to see all 5 of the Commissioners replaced. Its way past time for fresh blood to assume the helm.
Underhill came about thanks to Florida having closed primaries. His Republican opponent would have won in 2018 if the primary had been open.
Underhill thinks he is above the law and would not turn over public records per the sunshine law and is in a lawsuit to compel him to do so. It has run up exorbitant legal fees for the taxpayers. He also thinks the residency laws do not apply to him.
He took an oath office to uphold the constitution, which means abide by the law.
The ethics committee has recommended removal from office and we are awaiting the ruling. This will weigh in on that also.
If he is removed we won’t be on the hook for his ridiculous inability to follow his oath, and the taxpayers won’t have to fund those defenses nor retirement that he is trying to run out the clock on.
His claims of being a whistleblower are simply lies to protect his ego.
If he is removed he can’t run again, which will be a blessing, even for the folks that can’t see through him.
This further seals his fate, and memorializes that he is unfit to serve.
The 401a is simply an alternate retirement fund.
Desantis will not touch it so I think its just a way to get him to resign but he wont do that.
I’m sure he moved to D-5 because he knows that the people there will elect him when he runs again. He should have moved a mile and half further north into Alabama and run for Governor, they would like him there…
The guy that the commissioner cronies want out of office sounds like the guy I want in my district. About time we clean house with the good ‘ol boy commissioners. Bergosh himself needs to go. More worried about backroom deals than infrastructure.
I personally think that the other commissioners should just be quiet Mr.Underhill is not running for commissioner,he’s soon to be gone from that position in November,why y’all gotta continue with this harassment.what you 4 are trying to with this 401 A is more damageing than him buying a piece of property.Grow up Guys
Since 2010, I’ve known of 7-8 elected officials who have played the game of claiming to live in two places at once. In the city, we have a council member who bought a home outside of the city where he and his wife live. In the case of Underhill, it should be pretty easy to determine where he lives: 1) River Road house; 2) Walnut Hill property; or 3) somewhere in the new District 2. The lights are either on at sunset or not. If #1 or #3 then he’s OK. One other way to get more information is to check where he is registered to vote. The Supervisor of Elections can provide that information. Another factor is homestead exemption. On January 1, 2022, the Underhills owned two pieces of property – one in Perdido Key and one in Walnut Hill. He may have kept his homestead exemption on the Perdido Key property. Or he may have changed it to Walnut Hill. If he changed it to Walnut Hill, then he swore under oath that his permanent legal residence is in Walnut Hill. Opps. We’ll see when the Property Appraiser website gets updated.
Hey pot, can you investigate kettle please?
This is clear to everyone that this is a political hit job and all due to retribution agenda. Dist 1 or 5, who cares where he lives. Elections are in less than 4 months.
Term limits for all !
“A screenshot provided by Bergosh…”
This statement says a lot about Bergosh. He is a weasel who snoops around on facebook pages for a got ya.
As for the lucrative 401 plan… “It does not cost taxpayers anything beyond a typical FRS plan.” While this is true, it also diverts administrative fees that everyone else in FRS pays and enriches those select few well beyond what the regular employees receive.
Doug Underhill was never qualified to serve, and if he thinks Escambia County sucks, then don’t let the door hit ya where the Lord split you, “sir.”