VFD Audit to be made public
CARLA GWALTNEY OWENS Sentinel Writer

Phillip D. Hollifield, former member of the Clay County Fire and Rescue Squad, came before the Clay County Board of Commissioners with concerns about the finances at the local fire and rescue department. Hollifield said that approximately three months ago he asked for financial records from the department which have been ignored. Before speaking, Hollifield clarified that he was in no way accusing anyone of anything.

In a letter addressed to the commission, Hollifield stated, "After a period of over three months my requests have been ignored. I am sure you are aware that any public service agency that is tax supported is required by law to provide any citizen with full disclosure upon request. Failure of the Fire Department to comply with the law leads me to wonder if full accountability of the use of funds is a problem.

"As a taxpayer I request that you…contract with an independent outside auditing firm to Sentinel Ad 12-13-07:Layout 1 perform a complete and comprehensive audit of the last five years."

Specifically, Hollifield asked for the total amount of tax funds received by the department, expenditures in excess of $100, authorization for purchases, bidding process, where was item purchased, invoice for the item, when the item was received into stock and where the item is now.

Hollifield said that he served with the fire and rescue squad for many years, and although has not been actively involved for some time, Hollifield told commissioners that he had concerns about the department currently and would like a full disclosure of the finances of the department. Hollifield said an audit of the department will "put to rest any questions."

Hollifield said that the comment has been made that it is none of his business how the finances at the department are handled. "As a citizen and a tax payer it is all of our business," he stated.

Following Hollifield's presentation, County Manager Paul Leek informed him that the county has asked Sandy Dobson, who performs the county's audit each year, asking that an audit be performed. The audit will be completed in January and Leek said that information from the audit will be made available to the public.

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