Former Jacksonville City Councilman Matt Schellenberg weighed in last week as the effort to sell the JEA continues. Schellenberg offered the following letter to the editor, taking aim at a proposed compensation package for JEA employees:
In the business world, a CEO and board that proposed and affirmed an egregious compensation package as JEA did would be summarily dismissed and fired by their shareholders. They would clean house and put professionals in charge with board members who are responsible to their shareholders, the citizens of Jacksonville.
Unfortunately, JEA senior executives and the board live in the government world. While their actions could possibly be legal, their recent approval of the compensation package is unethically and intellectually dishonest to most thoughtful people. The citizens who are watching this charade unfolding around them are appalled and disappointed by the behavior of the JEA leadership, including its board.
Schellenberg was first elected to the Jacksonville City Council back in 2011 and won a second term in 2015. He was term-limited this year. He served as a liaison to the JEA when he was on the council.