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As County Administrator, Touart earns $155,252 annually.
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| date_of_death =
| place_of_death =
| occupation =[[Escambia County Administrator|County AdministratorAdministratorr]]<br/>([[Escambia County2002]]-[[2007]])
| religion =
| spouse =Barbara Touart
| children =Christy, Amber, Matthew, Jacob
}}
'''George Touart''' (pronounced TOO-ar) is the current former [[Escambia County Administrator]], . He was appointed on [[April 4]], [[2002]], by a unanimous [[Escambia County Commission]] vote in which he was selected over four other candidates.<ref>"Touart picked to lead Escambia." ''Pensacola News Journal'', April 5, 2002.</ref> He officially took the position on [[April 22]], replacing interim administrator [[Bob Halfhill]], who had served since the resignation of [[Tom Forrest]] on [[December 3]], [[2001]]. Touart presided over the [[soccer complex corruption scandal]] and the resulting removal from office of several [[County Commissioner]]s, as well as the County's reconstruction efforts following [[Hurricane Ivan]]. In [[2007]], a $1.4 million land purchase approved by the County was reconsidered and eventually canceled after undisclosed business relationships between Touart and the property's seller, [[Neal Nash]] of [[Martine's Corp.]], were revealed. As public scrutiny increased, Touart disclosed additional dealings with other entities that do business with [[Escambia County]]. Facing likely suspension and citing an "atmosphere of distrust" that made it "almost impossible to continue as county administrator,"<ref name="resigns">"Touart resigns." ''Pensacola News Journal'', September 7, 2007.</ref> Touart announced his resignation before the [[Board of County Commissioners]] on [[September 6]], [[2007]].
==Education and early career==
Born in Pensacola, Touart previously served as administrator in two Mississippi counties, Jackson County (from 1989 to 2001) and Madison County (from December 2001 to April 2002). He was also a City Councilman in Pascagoula, Mississippi, from 1984 to 1989.
Touart received a Bachelor of Science degree in Community and Regional Planning from the University of Southern Mississippi and a Master's Degree in Public Administration from Troy State University.<ref>[http://www.co.escambia.fl.us/departments/board_of_county_commissioners/CountyAdministratornew.php County bio]</ref> He and his wife [[Barbara Touart|Barbara]] have four children: Christy, Amber, [[Matthew Touart|Matthew]] and Jacob.
==Controversies==
===Connections to County land deal===
On [[August 21]], following inquiries by the ''[[Pensacola News Journal]]'', [[Escambia County Commission]]er [[Grover Robinson IV]] and [[Escambia County Attorney|County Attorney]] [[Janet Lander]] halted the purchase of a 217-acre property off [[Bauer Road]], which the Board approved 4-0 on [[August 2]]. (Robinson was out of town at the time.) The property, almost 70% wetlands, was purchased for $1.41 million from [[Martine's Corp.]] to be developed by the County as ballparks for the [[Perdido Bay Youth Sports Association]].
Commissioner [[Mike Whitehead]] dismissed Touart's nondisclosure as "just an oversight," but added, "in this post-W.D. era, we just got to have disclosures on this stuff." Commissioner Robinson said, "The worst thing it did is we are trying to build trust with the people and this pushes us back and we've lost trust."<ref name="future"/>
On [[August 23]], [[2007]], the County Commission voted to cancel the land deal. At the same meeting, the Commission also voted to put off until [[September 6]] any decision on reprimanding or penalizing Touart for his lack of disclosure. The ''Pensacola News Journal'' has and other media outlets published an editorial editorials calling for Touart's retirement.<ref name="retire">"Time for Touart to retire as county administrator". ''Pensacola News Journal'', August 26, 2007</ref>Touart resigned at the [[September 6]] meeting.
===Additional connections===
