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From Mecklenburg County manager Harry Jones:
The Charlotte Observer has published several articles and editorials regarding financial management and audits in the Department of Social Services. Despite this extensive coverage, there are details about the county's response that we feel should have been discussed more fully than they were in Observer stories.
Actions taken in response to the audit findings were reported to the Board of County Commissioners on June 16, and discussed in detail by the board's Audit Review Committee on June 24. The board further discussed these responses on July 7 when it received the ARC's report. At this same meeting, the board discussed the external auditor's written statement that management's responses appear “appropriate to resolve the noted issues.” To ensure the public is aware of all the steps being taken to fix DSS, we provide the following:
DSS no longer processes department financial transactions through a separate bank account. All DSS non-guardian transactions are now processed from the main county account through the county finance department, requiring signatures of the county manager and finance director.
DSS employees are being trained or retrained on financial policies and procedures. Work plans are being updated to include accountability and adherence to these.
The county's agreement with the Good Friends program ended in March, with the county refunding Good Friends $45,318.
Prior to the audit, DSS Director Mary Wilson halted the use of vouchers pending the review. Subsequent to audit findings, DSS permanently discontinued the use of vouchers. DSS now makes purchases through approved procurement cards and other procedures using stringent controls overseen by county finance.
Funds managed by DSS on behalf of Social Security beneficiaries are segregated from other funds. Only expenses related to Social Security guardian funds are expended from this account.
The county finance department identified all credit cards in DSS and throughout the organization. These cards have been destroyed and the related accounts have been closed, with a few exceptions that are warranted and approved.
We requested that the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department investigate questions about the use of Giving Tree donations. In partnership with CMPD, we will aggressively pursue any evidence of suspected misappropriation of funds to the appropriate conclusion. The CMPD investigation is ongoing.
The county manager's office directed the human resources department and the county attorney's office to determine necessary employee disciplinary action, including termination as appropriate. This action is underway.
All Giving Tree activity was halted at the beginning of the investigation and remains so.
Further follow up also is underway. County staff is preparing additional reviews based on questions raised by commissioners. These plans will be provided to the ARC at its next meeting.
In September, we also will supplement existing reporting protocols by implementing an employee report line. This will add another option for employees to report concerns they may have about financial management practices.
Finally, to ensure transparency, public documents and video of BOCC discussions related to the DSS audits are available online at www.MecklenburgCountyNC.Gov.
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