Vito Palazollo, the administrator of the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, has been on administrative leave since May 7 – collecting more than $9,000 a month to essentially not administer the agency.

"Sadly, we're paying him for doing nothing," health district board member Pius Weibel bluntly acknowledged last month.

Meanwhile, the three-member public health district board has been amassing evidence against Palazollo that could lead to either his resignation or firing at a meeting Monday. The board appears to have plenty of reasons to dismiss Palazzolo, including allegations he failed to follow policy in making purchases, regularly charging meals and coffee to a health district credit card and possibly violating the agency's nepotism rules. It's quite a record for a man who had been the boss for less than 18 months.

And it's a record that should embarrass the three-member public health board, not just because its members are supposed to oversee the agency's professional staff, but because they haven't acted with much urgency in resolving the Palazollo affair. They've allowed him to collect another $28,000 in taxpayer money, even as he's done nothing to earn it.

The administration of Vito Palazollo may be nearing an end, but that doesn't mean more changes aren't needed. For one thing, this is an opportune time to examine whether it's a good idea to have three people busily involved in other government agencies – the Champaign County Board and the township governments in Champaign and Urbana – also trying to keep tabs on a public health agency with an $8 million budget. The current situation suggests that a very part-time board isn't capable of overseeing such a large, diverse and growing government agency.