A behind-the-scenes fight for control of the Jacksonville Children's  Commission is spilling into the public, bringing the City Council into the  mix.

The heart of the matter: Should the agency, which gets a third of its $60  million budget from the city, report to an independent board or directly to the  mayor?

The issue came to a head last week after a month of efforts by the commission  to hire an interim executive director were stymied by Mayor Alvin Brown.

Executive Director Linda Lanier retired in March, and the commission first  appointed an existing employee as acting director — a move the board saw as  mollifying the mayor, who had asked them not to appoint a permanent  replacement.

Brown is looking to change the commission's structure so he directly appoints  the executive director, although city law now requires the commission to do  so.

In April, the commission voted to hire Jill Dame as an interim director, with a  planned start date of May 7.

When the city's human resources department was notified of the hire, though,  employees there said they couldn't process the paperwork until the mayor signed  off on it, commission Chairman Ken Wilson said.

As weeks went by and Brown didn't do so, Dame instead agreed to work as an  "advisory volunteer," a position that wouldn't let her sign documents or handle  other official tasks.

The city pushed back against this, too, Wilson said, saying that Dame  couldn't volunteer without a background check.

The commission did a background check, but by then Wilson had had  enough.