Bryant has money trouble (02/11/2009)

The town of Bryant is owed more than $2,600 due to overpayments and unnecessary bank fees while a former clerk-treasurer was in office, an Indiana State Board of Accounts audit has concluded.

The State Board of Accounts identified $2,682.71 to be collected on behalf of the town due to financial mistakes in 2006 and 2007 during the term of former Bryant Clerk-Treasurer Lisa Elzey. The audit report contains 19 sections of results and comments.

A copy of the report and conclusions has been forwarded to the Jay County Prosecutor and Indiana Attorney General. Jay County Prosecutor Robert Clamme could not be reached for comment this morning.

"Right now they're (the prosecutor's office) reviewing it and we're waiting to see what they're going to do before releasing a statement about what we're going to do," said Bryant Town Council President Jason Meinerding. "I spoke with the town attorney this morning and he's going to speak with the prosecutor today."

The report alleges that Elzey overpaid herself approximately $1,600 and that the town incurred more than $1,000 in overdraft fees for the town's checking account.

The affected funds are broken down into four categories: compensation and benefits, collections not deposited, overdraft charges and penalties, interest and other charges.

Under compensation and benefits, the report states that Elzey had overpaid her own salary in 2006, receiving an additional $1,518.60 from the wastewater utility fund and $405.60 from the town's general fund.

The report states, "On December 31, 2007, she repaid the $1,518.60 overpaid from the wastewater utility, but not the $405.60 overpaid from the general fund."

In a section titled collections not deposited, there is a note that "Collections of utility bills are posted to accounts receivable by the Clerk-Treasurer, who also prepares and makes bank deposits. A total of $882.58 of such postings could not be traced to bank deposits."

The majority of the owed money comes from overdraft charges of $1,159 in the town's checking accounts, meaning the town made payments dropping their accounts in the red.

The State Board of Accounts also lists "A total of at least $297.96 of penalties, interest and late fee was paid ... $235.53 of this was paid after such payments were discussed."

The report states in several areas that these mistakes "may be the personal obligation of the responsible official or employee."

The audit covers other various infractions - such as salaries paid in advance, deposits being made more than a week after receipt, failure to file annual reports and list of employees to the State Board of Accounts, and transactions not being recorded in town books, among others.

During the two-year span covered by the audit, the town received $197.36 in interest on town accounts at First National Bank and MainSource Bank, but was charged $560 in fees for not maintaining a minimum balance, a loss of $362.64.

Meinerding said the council will likely hold an executive session sometime before then to discuss possible litigation before the council's scheduled open meeting.

The Bryant Town Council will next meet Tuesday, March 3 at 6 p.m. at town hall. Meinerding said he will go through the report with the public and discuss its findings.

A couple of the audit report can be found at the State Board of Accounts Web site, www.in.gov/sboa, under the "Audit Reports" tab and "Audit Reports Recently Recently." The report is listed as Town of Bryant.[[In-content Ad]]