We asked again for Mahaney’s file after his leave. North Myrtle Beach sent this instead
The City of North Myrtle Beach is again violating open records laws and denying public documents.
After their city manger Mike Mahaney was placed on paid administrative leave during a special city council meeting, The Sun News reached out to multiple city officials to ask for a copy of his personnel file, which had previously been denied.
Mahaney’s file was the only one that was not given to The Sun News after reporters submitted FOIA requests to the City of Myrtle Beach, Town of Surfside Beach and City of Conway asking for their top employee’s files.
Information in Surfside Beach’s town administrator Gerry Vincent’s file shows that he may have lied on his job application for the town’s top role.
In response to the request, North Myrtle Beach’s Public Information Officer Lauren Jessie sent an email with a copy of Mahaney’s contract from 2010, along with the date his contract began and his current salary.
All other documents that could be in Mahaney’s file Jessie did not send, including the reason for council placing him on administrative leave last week.
“The information requested is exempt from disclosure pursuant to section 30-4-40(a)(2) of the Code of Laws of South Carolina because the information is of a personal nature where the public disclosure thereof would constitute an unreasonable invasion of personal privacy,” her email said.
Mahaney’s original employment contract said his starting salary in 2010 was $130,000 annually with a $600 a month car allowance.
Now, he’s paid $253,000 a year with a $1,000 a month car allowance, according to a copy of his resume that he distributed during an impromptu press conference while council was in executive session at Thursday’s special meeting.
Section 9 of the contract states that if Mahaney is terminated by City Council, he will be paid six months salary along with payout of all accrued vacation, sick and holiday time. Subsection B said the City of North Myrtle Beach will also continue to pay for all of Mahaney’s health, life and dental benefits for six months after his termination, unless he acquires new employment before then.
As of Friday afternoon, Mahaney had not yet placed a written notice requesting a public hearing about his removal, Jessie confirmed.
According to South Carolina law, he has until the end of the day on Tuesday to do so.
Attempts to reach Mahaney since the Thursday meeting have been unsuccessful.
Mayor Marilyn Hatley did not return The Sun News’s request for comment on Monday morning, and City Attorney Chris Noury did not respond to requests for comment on Friday. Hatley’s email address is mayorhatley@nmb.us.
To contact the rest of city council, their email addresses and phone numbers can be found here.
This story was originally published September 23, 2024 at 10:02 AM.
