Assistant Editor

Osceola County School Board member Jay Wheeler has secured legal counsel in his defense of complaints filed against him concerning alleged campaign spending and ethics violations.

Wheeler, seeking his third term in district 1, also recently repaid more than $2,300 into his campaign fund for personal spending after he was accused of using the fund to pay for non-political items, such as cell phone and Internet services.

Wheeler has retained the law office of Benedict P. Kuehne, of Miami, to represent him against the complaint, which were filed by community activist Tom Long, of St. Cloud. Long claims Wheeler has misused his authority as a school board member, as well as used political campaign contributions for personal expenses.

Long first filed complaints against Wheeler with the Florida Elections Commission in Tallahassee in mid-February alleging he used portions of his campaign funds to pay for cell phone usage for himself, his wife and his daughter, for gasoline and auto insurance and cable television, Internet and home phone service.

Long further informed the Elections Commission that Wheeler failed to include on his campaign reports a $1,000 expenditure to Osceola High School for a sponsorship sign.

Wheeler has since corrected the sign expenditure with an amended campaign report. Some weeks ago, he told the News-Gazette that the phone usage, gasoline and Internet service have always been a part of his campaign, saying, “This is nothing new. I’ve always used gas money out of my campaign funds … I travel all over for the campaign. I think this (filing the complaint) is just crazy.”

Kuehne, in a response to the Elections Commission, seeks dismissal of all complaints against his client, indicating that Wheeler has paid back his campaign fund for the various personal items mentioned.

“Mr. Wheeler’s practice, consistent with his effort to reasonably track campaign expenditures, has been to personally repay the campaign on a periodic basis, as he has done, correctly noting the payment to the campaign on a campaign treasurer’s report,” Kuehne wrote.

Repayment made in first quarter of 2010

According to the Osceola County Supervisor of Elections Web site (www.voteosceola.com, under “Candidates”), records show that Wheeler did reimburse his campaign $735 for cell phone use, $583 for Internet service and $995 for auto expenses. The campaign report reflecting that reimbursement was filed March 31, the last day of the reporting quarter. In a review of campaign records for every quarter over the past two years, the News-Gazette could find no other personal reimbursements of this type by Wheeler.

Kuehne’s letter to the Elections Commissions cited the complaint filed by Long as “a malicious intent to injure Commissioner Wheeler’s reputation with the knowledge the complaint contained one or more false allegations, or was done with reckless disregard for whether the complaint contained false allegations of material fact.”

The letter concluded with Kuehne saying his client deserved a monetary award of “at least $5,000.”

Wheeler would not respond to questions regarding legal counsel and the repayment of funds into his campaign, nor specify any instances of previous reimbursements to the fund for personal expenses. He did, however, send a letter to campaign contributors defending his record as a School Board member and calling the ethics and spending complaints personal attacks as attempts to “bully, intimidate, and brow beat” him because the attackers don’t like his “brand of independence and leadership.”

Ethics complaint

The ethics complaint, filed in mid-March with the Florida Commission on Ethics, claims Wheeler handed out campaign material, such as emery boards, bumper stickers and T-shirts during a teach-in without the approval of the superintendent; and had one of his campaign banners hung on school grounds by school employees after he was advised not to by the School Board attorney.

Long, in filing his ethics complaint, listed several state statutes regarding Wheeler’s actions. Among them were:

• “School Board employees shall not solicit support for any political candidate, partisan or non-partisan, during regular work hours.”

• “Facilities are only for use in the educational program and are not for personal political activity.”

• “School facilities shall not be used for advertising or otherwise promoting the interests of any commercial, political, or other non-school agency or individual organization; nor shall School Board employees or students be employed in such a manner.”

The ‘larger battle’

Long said Wheeler is now trying to focus attention away from the investigation.

“Mr. Wheeler will attempt to paint this as a frivolous distraction brought by a vocal opponent,” Long said. “I see this as a larger battle between honest representation and the misuse of a public position. That is why the Elections Commission and the Commission on Ethics are empowered to protect us.”

Long said the reimbursements to Wheeler’s campaign reports show an obvious attempt to cover his misdeeds.

“Looking at all of Mr. Wheeler's campaign reports, including his 2006 campaign, it becomes apparent that his pattern of spending has drastically changed, after the complaint was filed,” Long said. “I would suggest it may be on advice of counsel. It will not fool the Elections Commission. They can see the pattern.”

Long maintains he is not targeting Wheeler with any personal agenda, and has made a point to be vocal about what he believes are governmental wrongdoings.

“No, I am not targeting him like that. I have tackled bad government officials wherever I find them,” Long said. “The News-Gazette has printed many letters to the editor and news stories in which I was vocal against a variety of local issues.”

Long specifically pointed to his opposition against SunRail, property tax increases, Osceola County land acquisitions such as a former car dealership for Sheriff’s Office use and the county’s and School Board’s involvement in the proposed affordable housing development for teachers and emergency services personnel known most recently as The Preserve.

“If no one speaks out, corruption reigns,” Long said. “We all want honest representation. It should be every voter’s duty to investigate candidates and their track record, then vote.”