Bill Proctor

Last updated

Bill Proctor
Born1959[ citation needed ]
Alma mater Howard University, JD [1]
Occupationpolitician, FAMU instructor [1]
Political partyDemocrat
Children4

Bill Proctor is the Leon County, Florida District 1 County Commissioner, a role in which he has served since 1996. [1] Since 2000 he has also been an instructor in political science at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, Florida since 2000. [2] In his career he has run afoul of campaign finance laws a number of times, resulting in his being charged with 178 penalty counts, ordered by the State of Florida Commission on Ethics to pay civil penalties, and suffering his misdemeanor convictions for failing to report political contributions. In addition, his salary is garnished for his failing to pay federal income taxes and outstanding student loans. Commenting on his legacy, he said: "Whatever it is they say I am, I’m going to continue being all those things. And then when I’m dead, I’ll be done." [3]

Contents

Early life

Proctor grew up in Tallahassee, and attended FAMU high school. [1] He received undergraduate and law degrees from Howard University, and also studied at Boston University School of Theology, and Wesley Seminary in Washington, D.C. [1]

Career

Proctor served on former Florida Governor Lawton Chiles' 1994 re-election committee before being essentially fired according to Chuck Wolfe, Chiles' director of external affairs. [2]

Since 1996, he has been the Leon County, Florida District 1 County Commissioner. [1] In August 2022, he won another two-year term. [4] Since August 2000, Proctor has also been an instructor in Political Science at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, Florida. [2]

Campaign finance violations

In 1998, after a series of campaign finance violations, including a number of unreported campaign contributions, the Florida Elections Commission charged Proctor with 178 penalty counts totaling over $200,000 in damages, a figure that was reduced by a judge in 2004 to $82,000. Proctor responded by calling members of the Elections Commission the "funkiest and foulest low-life demons in existence against black political empowerment since the Ku Klux Klan," according to the Tallahassee Democrat . [2]

The State of Florida Commission on Ethics ordered Leon County Commissioner Bill Proctor to pay civil penalties on August 24, 2000, for violating the Full and Public Disclosure of Financial Interests sections of the Florida Constitution. [5]

In October 2001, an attorney for the Florida Elections Commission said Proctor had shown "a gross defiance" of campaign finance laws. The morning after his misdemeanor conviction of failing to report eight political contributions, Proctor did not show up for a hearing on the state's allegations, when asked why he said he had not been notified of the hearing. [6]

Tax evasion

Leon County Commissioner Proctor's salary is garnished for his failing to pay $20,334 in federal income taxes and penalties as well as $28,983 in outstanding student loans. According to court records, Proctor also owes the IRS a total of $61,750 in unpaid income taxes, interest, and penalties. [7]

Teaching attendance

The dean of FAMU issued a written reprimand for Proctor's frequent unexcused absences, and the campus newspaper, The Famuan , wrote an exposé about absentee professors naming only Proctor. When questioned in 2007, Proctor said, "I have the discretion and academic freedom to grade my courses as I deem. It ain't high technology and how many bolts of steel you need to have in a 40-story building." [2] In 2010, the Tallahassee Democrat asked why he was frequently absent. He responded, "I have no idea. I mean, I can't remember." [8]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Schultz, Edan. "Leon Commissioner applies for top Gadsden Co. job". wctv.tv.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "State: FAMU instructor sails through hot water". Sptimes.com. July 11, 2007. Retrieved July 17, 2012.
  3. Burlew, Jeff. "Proctor, Khufu again competing for District 1 seat". Tallahassee Democrat.
  4. "'I have loved my district': Bill Proctor secures another County Commission term in landslide". news.yahoo.com.
  5. "Commission on Ethics Final Order and Public Report". Ethics.state.fl.us. Archived from the original on March 16, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2012.
  6. "Official Accused of Thwarting Campaign-Finance Laws". Accessmylibrary.com. October 10, 2001. Retrieved July 17, 2012.
  7. Democrat, Tallahassee. "Agencies garnish Proctor's paycheck". Highbeam.com. Archived from the original on March 29, 2015. Retrieved July 17, 2012.
  8. "Tallahassee Democrat 2010". Tallahassee.com. Retrieved July 17, 2012.