Monroe County Airport Authority Director David Damelio resigned on January 3, 2011 after spending more than $21,000 of tax payer money on adult clubs, strippers, fancy restaurants and expensive cigars.
Instead of implementing a comprehensive solution, the Brooks Administration simply shuffled her staff around. Susan Walsh, the former Budget Director, replaced Damelio as the Director of the Airport Authority. Failure to address the systemic problems with the authority is a consistent regrettable pattern within the county government. A report released earlier this year by the Authorities Budget Office (ABO), the state agency that monitors public authorities, declared that:
… it is the position of the Authorities Budget Office that the current board of the Monroe County Airport Authority should be replaced by the County Executive. We believe that the Authority would be best served by new leadership, one that will be more cognizant of its responsibilities and aggressive in performing its board duties, and implementing and enforcing those policies. It is also the position of this office that the Authority paid certain expenses incurred by the prior Aviation Director that were inappropriately charged to the Authority and that these costs, paid for with public funds, should be recovered. Reference
The Authorities Budget Office’s task is to oversee public authorities and ensure that tax dollars are not being misappropriated. In the months since the ABO released its report, the Brooks Administration has simply refused to implement any of the report’s recommendations.
Airport Authority Director enjoys thousands of dollars of cigars at taxpayer expense
Airport Authority Director Quits Amidst Scandal
Solution to Scandal: Fire Airport Authority Board