County commissioners unanimously voted to bring the power of managing emergencies in Hillsborough back to their board rather than to the Emergency Policy Group.
The pandemic will now be managed by the seven Hillsborough County commissioners following an unanimous vote Wednesday to dissolve the county’s Emergency Policy Group and redistribute control.
The vote had been in the works for weeks and the decision ultimately transferred power from the EPG to the county commissioners. During the Wednesday meeting, it was decided the commissioners will meet weekly at 1:30 p.m. on Thursdays, starting today, to discuss updates. The county commission allowed the public to comment ahead of its vote on Wednesday and there was support both for and against the county taking back the management.
The now-former members of the EPG took a moment to reflect on their journey not only through this pandemic, but over the course of their years of managing hurricane and storm response during their final meeting Monday afternoon. Though they were all thankful for the often cohesive way they worked together, there were mixed feelings about the fact the fate of the EPG was to be decided later that week.
“I’m not mad or angry or anything like that, but I’m a little disappointed that I feel like we’re being replaced in the fourth quarter here,” Temple Terrace Mayor Andy Ross said.
Unlike the hurricane response, which the EPG had down to a science, the pandemic presented a new form of hurdles. The group waded into uncharted waters and there was little they could rely on as “standard procedure.” Instead they turned to data and community input, and they crafted policies and procedures based on the latest medical advice and guidance from Governor Ron DeSantis.
There were blunders — like the curfew that was put in place and then almost immediately revoked — and decisions the group stood behind for weeks, like the current mask mandate.
When reflecting on their years of service together, several of the members, including Plant City Mayor Rick Lott and Ross, said the group gained the reputation of being able to work together despite differing backgrounds and views. Lott said that was what democracy was all about. They may not all see eye-to-eye or agree on everything, but they vote and continue to respect one another.
The group had a unique makeup. Hillsborough was the only one of Florida’s 67 counties to have an emergency policy group. It was comprised of three county commissioners, the mayors from the cities of Plant City, Tampa and Temple Terrace, the Sheriff and the Chairman of the School Board.
Because of this lineup, each individual city had a seat at the table and could vouch for its own citizens as well as fight for the policies each respective mayor felt would most benefit their cities and the county as a whole. On Monday, the mayors shared their hesitation and concern about no longer having a voice if the county commission were to take over the EPG response.
Castor has been the most vocal in her plea for a continued role in emergency management, but no commissioners spoke in support of her request during Wednesday’s meeting. There was a brief discussion on hopes the county and the individual cities would be able to continue to work together and not fracture under the divide, but no promises were made that any mayor would be able to influence decision making.
Lott asked the county commissioners during Monday’s EPG meeting to look at all of the data before they make any decision and to try to get even more data coming in than the EPG had.
“I would like to ask the county commission that if indeed you do pass and change the members of the EPG, I do hope that you do consider a little more information in making these decisions,” Lott said. “I’m not trying to tell you how to do your job, but there’s some data I wish we could have had during our meetings that I think would have helped us, as well as maybe it would have helped our citizen group out there realize that we aren’t pushing our agenda, but we are looking at all bits of information so we are considering all facts in our community.”
Some of that data Lott referred to was information concerning business bankruptcies, unemployment, economic impact data, mental health and suicide rates, as well as “other key factors.”
EPG Chairman Les Miller, who also chairs the county commission, vowed they would not be left out of the conversation.
“We will definitely keep you all abreast of what’s going on,” Miller said to the group. “That’s the right thing for us to do. It’s our responsibility.”
