OAK GROVE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – At the Oak Grove City Council meeting on Jan. 7, auditor Clifton Daniel from the financial institution Borland Benefield, presented council with their 2023 audit information. According to Daniel, several notable findings were made during the audit procedure.

Daniel said they had five finding this year, some of which were repeats. One of the findings included a payroll clerk that had made edits to her own time sheets in the accounting and payroll system. “There was no authorized documentation provided for her to be able to make those edits. The total estimated amount of these unusual instances is $8,000 for the June 2023 fiscal year,” said Daniel.

Several recommendations were given to the city including a separation of duties, establishing oversight on the payroll process, and creating digital copies of timesheets. “Ideally, accounting systems should be segregated. Having one person oversee something, increases risk of mistakes on financial statements and an increased risk of misappropriation of funds,” he said. “Therefore, we recommend that staff assignments are segregated and receive proper review.”

Building back public trust, ramifications

Council members asked several questions about ramifications, and next steps. Daniel notified council that although there aren’t any legal ramifications from the auditors, the city doesn’t want to lose public trust. “You want the public to trust that everything here is operating effectively,” he added. It was also emphasized that the problem comes down to lack of staffing and having one person manage all the tasks for a small city.

Councilwoman Janet Edwards said the city needs to focus on reorganizing their jobs and hiring more employees to cover tasks. Finance Director Matt Egbert assured council he has already put in procedures to make sure there is more internal control. “I personally have a hand in this situation now and reviewing processes,” he added.

Council member Isaiah Spencer said “We have to make sure this doesn’t happen again. We don’t properly manage our own people. For the next two years I am sitting in this chair, I will make sure there is no mismanagement, no mis-control, and we have accountability.”

After discussion, council unanimously approved the audit presentation.

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