What is the update on the audit? Why is everything so hush hush? Did the firing of the Saria Reed have anything to do with the audit? Who does Mayor Crosby have to type his messages for him now? Where is the Ghost of EJ? He sure had a lot to say before he fell off the face of the earth. So many questions and so few answers.

According to the Controlers office it will be maybe another month before they are thru with their audit. Also they said they had been pointed in several different directions and they are going to be dotting all I's and crossing all T's

It appears Reed had nothing to do with it. &

rcsogumshoe wrote:

Also they said they had been pointed in several different directions and they are going to be dotting all I's and crossing all T's It appears Reed had nothing to do with it. &

Then there must be something of substance in several different areas and the fact it is taking so long. Sounds more than a "spot check" as Mayor Crosby stated. Why was Ms Reed terminated? Maybe she finally refused to be the ghostwriter for EJ's Ghost.

You can follow the latest on the State Comptroller's office website. There is a search tool on the right hand sidebar of the website and it's pretty sekf-explanatory. They have not released the latest results from the most recent audit but you can read the audit for 2002-2003.

Here's the link if you need it: http://www.comptroller.state.tn.us/

Are they even finished with the current audit?

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The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum. Adlai E. Stevenson American Lawyer, Politician.

Audit is over.Any questions?

Yes, when can we see the results. They aren't posted on the comptroller's web site yet.

_________________
The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum. Adlai E. Stevenson American Lawyer, Politician.

What did the comptrollers audit say about the lawyers fees the Appeals Court said must not be paid by Coopertown?

Gordon sent me an email and said the audit was over as of Monday 3/10. I assume the report will be posted on the comptrollers website after it is finalized.

_________________
The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum. Adlai E. Stevenson American Lawyer, Politician.

Gordon Rhodes wrote:

Audit is over.Any questions?

Gordon, I believe you got this one wrong. Rumors abound that that the police OVERSPENT 350$K of their 750$K budget. Gave 68$K for the mayors legal fees. Brand new police cars are not paid for. The auditors came on Jan 3 and are still there. Still digging. The more they dig, the more they find. The more they find, the longer they stay. What say you Gordon?

_________________
The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum. Adlai E. Stevenson American Lawyer, Politician.

STATE OF TENNESSEE
COMPTROLLER OF THE TREASURY
DEPARTMENT OF AUDIT
DIVISION OF MUNICIPAL AUDIT
John G. Morgan BANK OF AMERICA PLAZA Dennis F. Dycus, CPA, CFE, Director
Comptroller of the Treasury 414 UNION STREET, SUITE 1100 Division of Municipal Audit
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE 37219-1718
PHONE (615) 532-4460
FAX (615) 532-4499
May 9, 2008
Honorable Mayor and Members of the
Board of Aldermen
Town of Coopertown
2525 Burgess Gower Road
Springfield, TN 37172
Ladies and Gentlemen:
As part of our ongoing process of examining the records of municipalities, we have
completed our investigative audit of selected records of the Town of Coopertown. This
investigative audit focused on the period July 1, 2007, through December 31, 2007. However,
when the examination warranted, this scope was expanded. As a result, the following issues were
noted during our audit:
ISSUES
􀂾 Cash shortage $2,230
Our investigative audit revealed that $2,230 in cash collections from the November 8,
2007, town court were never deposited into a town bank account. The morning following
court, the two court clerks each noticed that cash was missing from their respective cash
drawers. Although the locked cash drawers were secured in a locked closet, the keys to
both the drawers and the closet had not been safeguarded.
􀂾 Failure to promptly report suspected fraud
Town officials failed to notify the Comptroller’s Office of the above-referenced incident.
Section 8-4-503, Tennessee Code Annotated, requires that officials of any public entity in
Tennessee must notify the Comptroller of the Treasury within five working days if they
reasonably believe that a fraud or theft has occurred in their government.
Honorable Mayor and Members of the
Board of Aldermen
Town of Coopertown
May 9, 2008
Page 2
􀂾 Comprehensive written purchasing policy not adopted
The mayor and the members of the board of aldermen failed to adopt a comprehensive
written purchasing policy. The Internal Control and Compliance Manual for Tennessee
Municipalities, Title 2, Chapter 1, states that municipalities should adopt a written
purchasing policy that includes designating persons authorized to make purchases,
requiring the use of prenumbered purchase orders, outlining procedures for emergency
and small-item purchases without prior approval, requiring approval by the finance
officer, and requiring bids for purchases over a stated amount.
􀂾 Failure to document bid of applicable purchases
Our investigative audit revealed that there was not evidence in town records that certain
qualifying purchases, including a tree-trimming contract, were publicly advertised and
competitively bid. Since the town had not adopted a purchasing policy by ordinance or
charter amendment, town officials were required to adhere to the Municipal Purchasing
Law of 1983, set forth in Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 6-56-301, et. seq. This
statute requires that purchases in excess of $2,500 be publicly advertised and
competitively bid.1 (Municipal governing bodies may by ordinance increase the dollar
amount required for public advertisement and competitive bidding from $2,500 to a
maximum of $10,000).
􀂾 Non-town bank accounts making use of the town’s employer identification number
Two non-town bank accounts, the Landfill/Legal Fund and the Hands Up to Coopertown
account, improperly made use of the town’s federal Employer Identification Number
(EIN). In addition, on several occasions, balances and activities for these accounts were
reported in public meetings, creating the appearance that these accounts contained public
funds. Municipal officials must ensure that only authorized town bank accounts make use
of the town’s EIN. Town officials should not report financial information of other
organizations as part of the town’s financial report. In addition, town officials should
forbid other organizations from presenting themselves as a subdivision of the town,
particularly when soliciting funds.
1The statute allows for certain exceptions, including emergency and sole source purchases.
Honorable Mayor and Members of the
Board of Aldermen
Town of Coopertown
May 9, 2008
Page 3
􀂾 Noncompliance with travel reimbursement regulations
Our investigative audit revealed that in some instances, reimbursement for mileage
expenses were made without adequate detail or documentation. The town adopted travel
reimbursement regulations in 1998 that allowed municipal officials and employees to be
reimbursed for travel within the town. However, the person filing the claim is required by
policy to present mileage logs which show the date of travel, purpose of trip, and number
of miles traveled. We noted instances in which the purposes of individual trips were not
documented.
􀂾 Several checks issued with only one signature
The recorder issued several checks that were signed by only one person. The Internal
Control and Compliance Manual for Tennessee Municipalities, Title 2, Chapter 2,
Section 2, states, “Municipal officials should require two signatures on all checks.”
The mayor and members of the board of aldermen should take immediate action to
correct these deficiencies. If you have any questions concerning this matter, please contact me.
Very truly yours,
Dennis F. Dycus, CPA, CFE, Director
Division of Municipal Audit
DFD/RAD

Thank you guest, here is the official report listed on the Tennessee Comptroller's web page:

http://www.comptroller1.state.tn.us/repository/MA/coopertown2.pdf

_________________
The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum. Adlai E. Stevenson American Lawyer, Politician.

Looks like they only went back to the beginning of this fiscal year. I bet the former police chiefs and officers suing the mayor would like to see them look back a little bit further. Don't you think if they found those things in 6-9 months there might be similar situations and people who made a profit from said unauthorized nobid purchasing? It seems the lack of due diligence in the accountability of how funds are allocated to vendors is what is pointed out as a flaw. Not only that it implies they have been formally notified before that this is not allowed to make purchases without following standard procedures. The simple reason for 'standards' are to keep every Tom, Dick and Harry from sticking his hand out to a government. This also demands fair practices to ensure the agency hiring/purchasing the product receives the promised goods or service at the most reasonable prices. When you hand out thousands of dollars a day, this case 2k$ because you have that ability according to MTAS, it is not to hire a person 12 times for 12 days or whatever, unless it is an emergency like a disaster. No, that kind of job it is ok to hire them on a daily basis. But, it is the one where you know you want to work on road A and you need to clear the tree's. That one requires an appropriate bidding process and to bypass this everytime it suits you is wrong. That is what the citizen watchdogs who have been in this long before I came along have been claiming this has happened here, once again. Are they right? You decide. I think so. What else I am left to think when ignoring the rules of basic business and TCA statutes and not telling what else seems to happen so many times?

Quote:

􀂾 Cash shortage $2,230 Our investigative audit revealed that $2,230 in cash collections from the November 8, 2007, town court were never deposited into a town bank account. The morning following court, the two court clerks each noticed that cash was missing from their respective cash drawers. Although the locked cash drawers were secured in a locked closet, the keys to both the drawers and the closet had not been safeguarded.

This was the week before the mayor cut the police force by 1/3. Coincidence? You have traffic court in the evening, you count all the money, lock up and go home. The money was noticed missing the next morning. How hard could it be to figure out who had access to city hall at night, the locked drawers and the keys to those locked drawers and the time to pull off this heist during the night? Obviously someone who worked at city hall during the night of Nov. 6. Why would the mayor sweep this under the rug? Could it be, he fired all suspects of this crime guilty or not?

_________________
The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum. Adlai E. Stevenson American Lawyer, Politician.

Paul, you hit the nail on the head with that one! Why can a appeals court judge blatently ignore the facts presented before them and not oust this "expletive".