An auditor from the State Auditor and Inspector’s Office spent three days at Hennessey’s Town Hall Jan. 29-Feb. 2.

It’s part of a continuing forensic audit of the town’s financial records.

The audit began in mid-October after a request by then-District Attorney Mike Fields of Enid.

Fields said he started the process after a preliminary inquiry by the State Bureau of Investigation.

That report showed “possible financial concerns,” Fields told the KT&FP before he announced his retirement in December.

The town has yearly financial audits, but forensic audits look for financial misconduct by employees, or officers of an organization.

Audit Costs to Town

Trustees were told in October it would cost about $75,000 and would take six months to complete if they’d asked the state for an audit.

When asked by the KT&FP, Town Administrator Tiffany Tillman said it has cost the town $10,500 so far. That doesn’t include the most recent three days, or continued work.

She was also told it could take three to four more months for the completion of the report.

Once it’s finished it will be presented to the board in a public meeting, Tillman said.

Auditor’s Suggestions “He was given free rein to look at all records,” Tillman told Hennessey town trustees at their Thursday, Feb. 8, meeting.

“We also provided all records he’d requested,' she said at the meeting and had also written in her monthly board report.

“He commended some control changes such as locking bank bags, locking cash drawers, etc.,” wrote Tillman. “Those changes were implemented immediately,” He also suggested to Tillman that she take all claims on the agenda for approval to the meeting as well as all bank statements.

“We will have all of them available if you have any questions,” she wrote In addition to Tillman, the auditor also worked with Town Treasurer Shelley Burch (who is also employed as town hall office manager).

Her report of auditor items included some of those on Tillman’s list plus these suggestions: double- check and signing off on daily drawers and deposits; locking drawers for all town hall employees, and locksmith to “try to work on the drive-in lock box that hasn’t worked in 20 years and we would like to utilize it if it’s fixable.”

Burch also wrote: “January bills were sent out by mistake for the February This has been addressed and we are taking care of our customers as they come in and explain the situation. Most everyone has been very understanding.”

The auditor also met individually with all five town trustees: Mayor Clif Vogt, Vice Mayor Harold Shaw, Bert Gritz, David Jones and Randy Bohnstedt.

Trustees were asked by the KT&FP reporter during their Thursday meeting if the auditor told them about any problem areas they’d found.

All five indicated no. Vogt said they were mostly asked about themselves and Gritz agreed.

Phone Payroll Time Clock Switch

Instead of employees filling out paper payroll hours, they’ll soon be using their phones that will keep track of their hours, and where and when they are working.

That’s because trustees unanimously voted to purchase hardware, storage and software equipment that will be able track where they are working and when they start and stop working.

Cost is $10,210 a year for the first year, and $2,200 a year after that.

It wasn’t mentioned at the meeting if this was suggested by state auditors, or by board members or staffers.

Open Record Denial Started Audit Issues

Jones contacted the State Auditor and Inspector’s Office in June after town employees refused to allow him inspection of personnel records.

“Trustees have the right to view any records,” Mick Dodson told trustees at their July meeting. Dodson is director of compliance for the auditor and inspector’s office.

“It’s a trustee’s job and they have more invested than a citizen so they are not required to make an open record request to get that information,” Dodson said.

Jones had also complained during the June trustee meeting that he’d been asked by a family friend to see a police officer’s body cam. Jones asked and never got results, but since it was his friend, he asked Shaw to get involved.

Apparently in response to that situation, Dodson told trustees, “Just because you have that right doesn’t mean you can share that information with anyone else, except other board members.

“It’s the same as a board member not being able to share what took place in an executive session.”

Jones said he didn’t blame the police chief for the lack of cooperation.

At the Meeting

Elected officials at the Feb. 8 meeting were Vogt, Shaw, Gritz, Jones and Bohnstedt; Town Clerk Kelley Vaverka and Burch.

Staff at the meeting were Tillman and Fire Chief Brandon Scott.

( Ed. note: See more town meeting discussion and voting in upcoming issues.)