Why Should Delaware Care?
The Kent County administrator effectively handles the day-to-day management of the county government, including managing county employees and supervising its departments, among other responsibilities. The abrupt termination of a recent administrator raises questions about how commissioners view the position.
In March, then-Kent County Administrator Ken Decker wrote a letter to Delaware’s Public Integrity Commission (PIC) after a perceived conflict of interest on the Kent County Levy Court went unreported for nearly a year.
What ensued was months of tension between Decker and members of the Levy Court, which serves as the county’s elected commissioners, and soon after, it terminated him “for no stated reason.”
Now, Decker will head to a public hearing to make a case that his firing was retaliatory. That hearing will happen one day after an election where a Levy Court commissioner, who the PIC found to have a conflict of interest, is unopposed in his race to retain his seat.
The conflict
Decker served in his role as Kent County administrator for less than two years before he was terminated by commissioners.
He was hired in early 2023 to succeed longtime County Administrator Michael Petit de Mange, who retired in October 2022 after 16 years in the role. Decker was no stranger to leading large jurisdictions, having previously served as a county administrator in Caroline County, Md., as well as a town manager in Hampstead, Md.
But early on in his tenure, a conflict was brought to his attention. Nearly a year went by before any sort of referral was made by Decker to the PIC, an appointed body that reviews alleged conflicts of interest by elected officials, senior administrative officers and political appointees.
The conflict in question concerned Kent County Levy Court Commissioner George “Jody” Sweeney, and his involvement with the POLYTECH School District, which operates the county’s career and technical education high school.
Decker sent his concerns to the county attorney, Levy Court President Terry Pepper and Sweeney in April 2023, but intended to stay out of any sort of “fact-checking” around the allegations, a letter sent to the PIC said.
“Please note that I’m not suggesting a conflict of interest does or does not exist here,” Decker’s letter said. “I’m simply discharging my professional obligation to bring the matter to the table.”
According to a letter sent to the PIC by Decker, Sweeney worked as a substitute teacher, and had family working in the district, yet took votes on matters related to a property used by the school district.
The building, which the county owns, sits outside of the Dover Air Force Base and is used as part of POLYTECH’s aircraft maintenance program. At a Levy Court meeting on May 21, Sweeney introduced a resolution to extend the nominal $1 a year lease at the property rather than seek to sell the property to the school district outright.
It passed 6-1, with Sweeney voting in favor of the lease.
That same day, the PIC had its own meeting examining Sweeney’s connection to the district. In the end, the PIC found there was a conflict of interest. But because the PIC is purely an advisory commission, it doesn’t have any teeth to enforce any kind of action based on its findings.
It ruled that Sweeney must recuse himself from any votes related to the POLYTECH School District, lest those decisions run the risk of a legal challenge due to his involvement. The PIC also commended Decker for submitting the complaint.
“As a new county employee, it is unlikely he envisioned a scenario where he would be the lone voice advocating for an opinion from the state ethics board, in the face of staunch refusal,” the decision said.
Kent County responds
The PIC made its decision in June, and a few days afterward, Decker shared it with the full Levy Court. In a proceeding email, Sweeney questioned the PIC’s understanding of Levy Court, calling Decker a “subordinate.”
As part of that response, Sweeney decried Decker sharing the decision with members of Levy Court.
“Just to be clear, the ‘opinion’ of the Public Integrity Commission is private and confidential, and should not have been shared with anyone BUT you, as the applicant, the county attorney, and myself,” Sweeney wrote to Decker. “You sharing it with Levy Court Commissioners is a violation of my rights and confidentiality.”
On Sweeney’s campaign Facebook, he made a post in August addressing the allegations and staunchly denied them. He said the county attorney absolved him of any conflict of interest, and emphasized the PIC decision is advisory.
“The result from the Public Integrity Commission was not a violation, just an advisory, and it came from a rogue ex-State Legislator, who made statements that indicate he does not know how the Kent County organizational structure works,” the post said, referring to former State Sen. Gary Simpson who chairs the PIC.
Decker would be terminated three months later. But the night of his firing, commissioners did not follow the proper procedures, he argued.
According to state law, Kent County administrators can be terminated if commissioners vote to adopt a preliminary resolution with a reason for the termination. After that resolution is delivered to the administrator, they would have 10 days to write a formal plea for a public hearing.
But in Decker’s case, Levy Court commissioners did not put any kind of resolution on the table when they terminated Decker on Sept. 24., and he verbally requested a hearing after he’d already been fired.
A copy of a signed preliminary resolution obtained by Spotlight Delaware shows the county terminated Decker “for no stated reason.”
When reached for comment on his response to the PIC’s decision and the termination, Sweeney would not comment on the termination. As for the PIC decision, he said he has “nothing to hide” and would discuss it after Decker’s hearing.
The hearing is set for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 6, in person at the Kent County Levy Court and online.
The post Kent County’s administrator filed ethics complaints – he was later fired appeared first on Spotlight Delaware.