Former Boynton Beach Human Resources Director and one-time Delray Beach City Commission candidate Tennille DeCoste has been publicly reprimanded by the Palm Beach County Commission on Ethics for misuse of public office, Boynton Beach officials reported.

The Commission on Ethics also found that former Boynton Beach Mayor Ty Penserga orchestrated a private meeting to pressure City Manager Dan Dugger to withdraw ongoing ethics complaints against DeCoste — and then supported DeCoste’s complaints against city leadership that the ethics commission later dismissed.

“The evidence made clear that former Mayor Penserga used his position not to support transparent governance, but to advance Ms. DeCoste’s personal interests during an active ethics investigation,” the city’s statement said.

Dugger filed the complaint with the ethics commission, which accepted a negotiated settlement agreement with DeCoste on Dec. 4.

Investigators found that DeCoste, who was running for the Delray Beach City Commission at the time, had used a city purchasing card for a non-city event without authorization, according to the Boynton Beach statement. They also found she coordinated the effort to pressure the city manager, filed unfounded retaliatory complaints against city leaders, and attempted to obstruct the ethics oversight process, the statement said.

The ethics commission advocate had recommended findings of probable cause on five allegations against DeCoste, including acceptance of a gift from a vendor, but the settlement included only the findings of misuse of public office and interference violations.

Dugger fired DeCoste in February 2024 for intermingling her job duties with her campaign for the Delray Beach commission, which she eventually lost. She was employed with

Boynton Beach for 14 months at a $188,000 annual salary.

—Staff report

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