Palm Beach County's New Anti-Corruption Inspector General Selected Sheryl Steckler

By Jennifer Sorentrue Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Updated: 7:53 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011
Posted: 5:50 p.m. Wednesday, May. 5, 2010  
WEST PALM BEACH — The woman responsible for ferreting out corruption for the state's Department of Children and Families was chosen today to serve as Palm Beach County's first-ever inspector general.
Sheryl Steckler, 48, was one of eight finalists for the newly created post, which will watchdog over the kind of waste and misdeeds that have sent five local elected officials to federal prison.
A seven-member selection panel consisting of the county's ethics commission, State Attorney Michael McAuliffe and Public Defender Carey Haughwout chose Steckler after two days of interviews.
The selection marked one of the final steps in a year-long effort to rid the county of its corruption-tainted image.
"I think it is meaningful benchmark of success," McAuliffe said after the selection. "…We are on are way. What a difference a year makes."
County attorneys plan to meet with Steckler Thursday morning to begin negotiating the terms of her contract. County commissioners will have to sign off on the contract before it becomes official.
Steckler has spent seven years working as the inspector general for DCF in Tallahassee, where she oversees a staff of as many as 150 employees and makes $107,000.
Steckler could not be reached for comment Wednesday. She graduated from Twin Lakes High School in West Palm Beach. In her application for the post, she pointed to her decades of management experience and work with the National Association of Inspectors General, where she currently serves as second vice president.

"My responsibility has always been to enhance the public trust in government," Steckler wrote. "My integrity and strong work ethic have never wavered, even in the most difficult times."
DCF Secretary George Sheldon praised Steckler's work for the department, saying she has been "very aggressive" in ferreting out "all kinds of issues." She has also worked to close loopholes that have led to fraud and waste, he said.
"When you have 4,500 employees you are going to get some bad apples," Sheldon said. "What you have to do is put some systems in place that identify when it does happen without putting the good employees in jeopardy."
In Palm Beach County, Steckler will lead a newly created inspector general unit. She will have the power to conduct audits and require reports from all county offices. She will also have unrestricted access to county records.
County commissioners agreed to create the inspector general post last year, after a grand jury convened by McAuliffe recommended the county enact tougher ethics laws. The inspector general and ethics commission topped that list.
Last month, the county's ethics commission chose Alan S. Johnson, the county's top corruption prosecutor, to serve as its executive director.

"It is hard for me to believe that we are where we are today," said attorney David Baker, who helped create a coalition to push for county ethics reform.
Baker said the coalition is also working on amendments to the county's charter that would allow the inspector general to investigate cities and towns, and not just county offices.
"There is still a lot that the new inspector general and the new executive director are going to have to do," Baker said. "They will need some help."

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/countys-new-anti-corruption-inspector-general-selected-672448.html  

Alan S. Johnson