(The Center Square) – Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway gave Perry County a rating of “fair” in an audit report distributed on Monday.
The rating indicates the county needs to improve operations in several areas that require immediate attention. The audit found problems with the administrations of Sheriff Jason Klaus, County Collector Rodney Richardet, County Clerk Jared Kutz and court-appointed public administrator Tamara Tarrillion.
The audit found the sheriff doesn’t disburse commissary net proceeds to County Treasurer Kathy Schumer for deposit into the Inmate Prisoner Detainee Security Fund as required by state law. Approximately $32,300 was found to be commissary net proceeds in the sheriff’s account. The audit also found sheriff’s office personnel doesn’t perform bank reconciliations and create a monthly list of liabilities for the commissary account.
The audit found the sheriff doesn’t properly reconcile fuel used to fuel purchased for the department and doesn’t document his review of fuel usage reports.
“Deputies fuel patrol cars using a bulk fuel tank and fuel cards,” the report stated. “The fuel tank is monitored by video camera; however, the tank is easily accessible and unlocked, and the pump is always turned on.”
The audit stated problems with the net commissary proceeds not being properly deposited and establishment of fuel procedures were noted in two prior audit reports. The report said the sheriff hasn’t established adequate computer password controls to increase electronic data security, also noted in two previous audit reports.
The collector improperly reimbursed himself $1,480 from the Tax Maintenance Fund for television service for its offices in the county administration building, the report stated. No supporting documentation was maintained for the reimbursements and the collector said he paid for the expenses for several years and didn’t know it violated state law.
“Because television service is primarily personal and not related to costs or expenses incurred in the office of the County Collector, the disbursements are not an appropriate use of Tax Maintenance Fund Money,” according to the report.
The audit found the public administrator, responsible for wards or decedent estates of the circuit court’s probate division, maintained possession of a deceased ward’s property. After the ward died in 2019, the public administrator in August 2020 spent $250 on trail cameras, batteries, memory cards and set-up expenses to monitor to suspicious activity at the ward’s property. The public administrator stated she forgot to give the equipment to the ward’s estate after the ward’s real estate properties were auctioned.
The report stated the public administrator didn’t issue receipts for checks received and sporadically documented checks received on a receipt log. The audit found 17 checks and one money order worth a total of $9,981 weren’t restrictively endorsed.
“Failure to implement adequate receipting, recording and depositing procedures increase the risk that loss, theft or misuse of money received will occur and go undetected,” the report stated.
The clerk failed to submit a certified copy of the 2021 and 2022 county budgets to the auditor as required by law, the audit said. The report also found neither the County Commission nor the County Clerk submitted proof of publication of the county’s financial statements to the state auditor for 2020 and 2021 as required by law.
