Phil Ammann
Department of Environmental Protection employee Barton Bibler did not receive a reprimand for violating Gov. Rick Scott’s unofficial prohibition on the term “climate change,” an agency representative says.
DEP Communications Director Lauren Engel responded Thursday by contending the censure was for “personal political advocacy related to the Keystone XL pipeline.”
“As stated in Mr. Bibler’s written reprimand,” Engel wrote in an email. “He was reprimanded for violating three DEP standards of conduct, including poor performance, insubordination, and conduct unbecoming a public employee.”
On March 9, the DEP suspended Bible, a Land Management Plan coordinator in DEP Division of State Lands, after he attended a Florida Coastal Managers Forum on Feb. 27. The discussion, which included the words “climate change,” was entered the official meeting record, according to a complaint filed by the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
PEER says that DEP superiors ordered Bibler to remove any “hot button issues,” including explicit references to climate change. The letter of reprimand accused Bibler of misrepresenting the “official meeting agenda (so it) included climate change.”
Bibler was told to take two days personal leave, charged against his personal time. Later, he received a “Medical Release Form” requiring a doctor to provide an evaluation of “medical condition and behavior” before Bibler can return to work.
The reprimand was not for saying “climate change,” Engel wrote.
“On March 2, Mr. Bibler was asked by his manager to attend the Coastal Managers Forum — an inter-agency meeting, as a representative of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection,” she wrote. “At that meeting, he engaged in personal political advocacy related to the Keystone XL pipeline — an issue that was not on the meeting agenda nor related to his job duties.”
After the meeting, Engel continued, Bibler failed to fulfill his functions as assigned in an “appropriate and respectful way.”
Bibler also failed to provide an accurate summary of the meeting after multiple requests by his supervisor, Engle wrote, instead responding in a “disrespectful and argumentative fashion” by merely providing an attachment with the “Keystone XL Pipeline” crossed out in red.
“While we respect all our employees’ personal beliefs,” Engel wrote, “we expect them to perform their duties in an impartial and appropriate manner and to stay focused and engaged on job-related activities during work hours.”
Florida PEER Director Jerry Phillips, a former DEP attorney, called on the DEP Office of Inspector General to open an investigation, to determine the propriety of handling Bibler, including forced leave and the directive to waive privacy rights to allow the DEP to review a physician evaluation.
“Due to HIPPA laws,” Engle wrote, “we cannot discuss an employee’s health.”
