Auditor's letter supports use of escrow for
advertising
 
STEVEN A. McCALEB
103 ALVERADO DRIVE
LONG BEACH, MISSISSIPPI 39560
PHONE & FAX: (228)-868-8428
E-MAIL: info@mississippiwebsite.com
WEB SITE: www.mississippiwebsite.com
So, Phil Bryant, our
Mississippi State Auditor say the our Harrison county Supervisors
has done no wrong.
That spending $1 million
taxpayers dollars a year any way they want to is not
against Mississippi laws.
I would suggest that "we
the people" need to replace Phil Bryant, State Auditor of
Mississippi with a State Auditor that is not against the Mississippi
taxpayers and voters.
The Governor of the state of
Mississippi needs to remove these elected officials
and state agency personnel.
REMEMBER: MONEY, POWER, &
PERKS + FRAUD, WASTE, & ABUSE = CORRUPTION
By GEOFF PENDER
THE SUN HERALD
Friday, August 18, 2006
GULFPORT -Harrison County leaders say a
state auditor's letter, which the county faxed to local media, clears
them of any wrongdoing related to the county's "escrow
account," but the State Auditor's Office says that is not what the
letter states.
After reading this article, I believe the
State Auditor, Phil Bryant agrees that spending $1 million of the
taxpayers dollars in the right thing to do.
Any elected official and/or state agency
personnel that spends taxpayers money any way they want should be
removed.
S.L. Murray, an auditor's attorney, said the
letter he sent the board was referring only to whether escrow money can
be spent to advertise the county.
How is purchasing Mardi Gras beads, parties,
cars and sport utility vehicles, toys, food, furniture, television sets,
stereos and clothing and to send supervisors' constituents on trips to
Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Branson, Mo. Even so, supervisors deny that they
use the account to curry political favor from voters is advertising
Mississippi.
It tell me that our Harrison County
Supervisor's are spending our taxpayers escrow money any way they want
too. And Phil Bryant, our Mississippi State Auditor supports this type
of spending. Mississippi is a lawless state.
This is a prime example of how our tax paid
elected officials and state agencies take care of each other, and this
is not serving the people of Mississippi.
Please vote on my online Initiative
Petition: www.mississippiwebsite.com/petition.htm
"The letter doesn't say any more than
it does," Murray said. "It addresses a very narrow issue -
advertising."
Which protects the elected officials and
state agencies from any wrong doing.
However, Murray said, "From what we saw
of the process side of this account, they appear to be doing it in
accordance with current law... That's not to say we agree with it or we
don't."
What is the current law, I have never seen
this law Murray is relating too.
State auditors reviewed escrow spending
after receiving complaints from several citizens. The complaints came,
auditors said, after articles in The Sun Herald described how the county
spends about $1 million a year in tax dollars that it refers to as
escrow money. Murray said most of the complaints focused on the county
buying thousands of dollars a year worth of Mardi Gras beads for
officials and their guests to throw from floats in parades.
My complaint was too request Governor,
Ronnie Musgrove remove all of the Harrison County Supervisors.
But the political machine here in
Mississippi is rooted deep, and the taxpayers and voters of Mississippi
are the only ones which can break this political machine.
http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/law_lib_research/laws/msconst.html
click here to read
the Mississippi Constitution***
Sec. 5. All
political power invested in, and derived from, the people; all
government of right originates with the people, is founded upon their
will only, and is instituted solely for the good of the whole.
Sec. 6. The
people of this state have the inherent, sole, and exclusive right to
regulate the internal government and police thereof, and to alter and
abolish their constitution and form a government whenever they deem it
necessary to their safety and happiness; Provided, such change be not
repugnant to the constitution of the United States.
The auditor's office and Board of
Supervisors have characterized the Mardi Gras throws as county
advertising.
County advertising, $19,000 of taxpayers and
voters money went to throwing Mardi Gras Beads.
I bet the people which caught those beads
are saying, "I am so glad we spent our tax dollars on Mardi Gras
beads."
Harrison County Chancery Clerk John McAdams
said the March 9 letter from Murray "tells me, as the county's
auditor and treasurer, that the Board of Supervisors has done nothing
wrong or improper."
Here is another piece of work, Harrison
County Chancery Clerk, John McAdams. Here is a person which works in the
same building as the Harrison County Supervisors. I would think they are
the best of friends and look out of one another.
I requested records under the Mississippi
Public Records Act of 1983, I requested the same exact records which the
Sun Herald Newspaper asked for and received.
www.mississippiwebsite.com/chanceryclerk.htm
click here
E-mail I received from Chancery Clerk, John
McAdams:
Mr. McCaleb:
This is in response to
your request for public records.
The cost for production
of claims:
201 pages @ $.50 a copy
= $100.50
The cost for production
of computer printout:
200 pages @ $.72 a copy
= $144.00
Total Amount Due:
$244.50
These records will be
available to you upon payment.
The records you
requested pertaining to the Sun Herald article produced in court are
not official records. This is a work product maintained in the
County Administrator's Office for management of the escrow account.
BLS
Why would records,
which are public records, cost anything. As much of the taxpayers
money as these state agencies waste. So why should "we the
taxpayers" have to pay twice of the same records.
"They have reviewed the same documents
that The Sun Herald requested and that the articles resulted from,"
McAdams said.
I wonder if the,
"not official records," are the ones Sandra Cuevas produced as
an X-employee of Larry Benefield.
Sandra Cuevas, a former secretary in the
county's Lyman Work Center, has said Supervisor Larry Benefield had
workers keep a separate and highly detailed accounting of & quot;
his escrow money, & quot; and that he directed spending from the
account. Cuevas also has said Benefield frequently directed day-to-day
operations at the work center in his district, in apparent violation of
state unit system laws. Cuevas quit her county job in 1999, she said,
because of disagreements with Benefield
Murray said, "When we say we looked at
the escrow account, we didn't look at all the purchases. There's
something like 17,000 entries on that account. We didn't look at 17,000
entries. We don't have the manpower for that. We reviewed expenditures
from that account, and the ones we reviewed appear to follow state
law."
And you can be sure that if an expenditure
was found which did not follow state law, it was over looked.
Such as $19,000 worth of beads, I would say
this did not follow state law. But is did save lots of money for the
people throwing the tax paid beads.
Elected supervisors say they use the escrow
money as a "catch-all" for expenses that crop up during a
budget year. They say much of the money goes to good causes - helping
sports leagues, cities, churches, schools and the elderly.
My question is, why is the taxpayers money
spent on sports leagues, cities, churches, schools and the elderly.
What is the other $99 million spent on; no
this is what is known as FRAUD, WASTE, & ABUSE.
The county also has spent thousands of
dollars from the account on Mardi Gras beads, parties, cars and sport
utility vehicles, toys, food, furniture, television sets, stereos and
clothing and to send supervisors' constituents on trips to Myrtle Beach,
S.C., and Branson, Mo. Even so, supervisors deny that they use the
account to curry political favor from voters.
Do you as taxpayers have an account where
you can spend money on the above items.
Do you have $1 million a year to spend
anyway you want too, knowing the taxpayers will give you another $1
million next year.
REMEMBER: MONEY, POWER, & PERKS + FRAUD,
WASTE, & ABUSE = CORRUPTION
In the name of advertising the county,
officials over the past few years have bought more than $17,000 worth of
umbrellas emblazoned with the Board of Supervisors seal, plus thousands
of dollars worth of printed pens, pencils, T-shirts, caps and paper
fans.
Should our Governor, Ronnie Musgrove, remove
the Harrison County Supervisors, Chancery Clerk, & State Auditors.
REMEMBER: MONEY, POWER, & PERKS + FRAUD,
WASTE, & ABUSE = CORRUPTION
Murray's letter also states that
"Whether such expenditures by the Board, although allowable under
current law, are the wisest use of county resources is for the Board
and, ultimately, the citizens of Harrison County to decide."
"Allowable under current law,"
what law?
"Ultimately, the citizens of Harrison
County to decide." We are trying to decide, but when you have
elected officials and state agencies saying that under the current law,
the Harrison County Supervisors have done no wrong. It's time for the
Governor of the state of Mississippi to step in and remove these elected
officials and state agency personnel.
The Sun Herald has sued the Board of
Supervisors over a December public records request for escrow account
records, claiming the county did not provide all the records requested.
The board has filed a countersuit and criticized the newspaper, claiming
it did provide them. But since the lawsuit was filed, the county has
provided additional records, including some that county leaders had
denied existed.
REMEMBER: MONEY, POWER, & PERKS + FRAUD,
WASTE, & ABUSE = CORRUPTION
"Since the lawsuit was filed, the
county has provided additional records, including some that county
leaders had denied existed."
But they have done nothing wrong, and hiding
records is being truthful. BS
STEVEN A. McCALEB
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