In Kentucky, "Wild Spending Worthy Of Outrage".
Wild spending worthy of outrage
While its top officials were living high on the hog, spending more than a half-million dollars on food and travel in two years, the Kentucky Association of Counties was raising the fees that it charges county governments for services such as insurance and financing.
Taxpayers have every right to be outraged, especially since little documentation or justification were required for the lavish meals, posh hotels and gifts.
KACo is governed by a board made up of elected county officials. Some board members who should have been blowing the whistle couldn't because their mouths were full of the fruits of unchecked credit-card spending.
Spencer County Judge-Executive David Jenkins, for example, charged $20,000 last year during his term as KACo president, including $464 at the Belterra Casino and its restaurants in Indiana and more than $15,000 at other bars and restaurants.
Someone should have realized that Jenkins' spending was out of line. His predecessor, Shelby County Magistrate Tony Carriss, charged $1,473 on his KACo credit card during his year in office.
But no one except KACo Executive Director Bob Arnold was reviewing his and other big-spenders' credit card bills.
KACo strengthened oversight after the Herald-Leader requested the association's expense records, but the oversight still is far short of what's obviously required.
Nor has KACo's board adopted more than a few of the recommendations for more effective oversight issued by state Auditor Crit Luallen in response to Herald-Leader investigations of similar abusive spending by executives of Blue Grass Airport and the Lexington Public Library.
The Herald-Leader also found a pattern of excess in spending by KACo's counterpart, the Kentucky League of Cities.
At KACo, reporter Ryan Alessi discovered, Arnold and his top four lieutenants racked up nearly $600,000 in travel, entertainment and other expenses in 2007 and 2008.
During that period, the administrative fees that KACo charges county governments (we're talking tax money here, folks) went up by 25 percent or about $1 million.
The higher fees came at a time when rising jail costs were sinking many county governments.
County governments, on behalf of their taxpayers, should demand to know how much KACo could reduce its overhead by holding its executives to reasonable standards for spending.
Update 7/1: Read more on Kaco here.
It looks like many people there have it made.
While its top officials were living high on the hog, spending more than a half-million dollars on food and travel in two years, the Kentucky Association of Counties was raising the fees that it charges county governments for services such as insurance and financing.
Taxpayers have every right to be outraged, especially since little documentation or justification were required for the lavish meals, posh hotels and gifts.
KACo is governed by a board made up of elected county officials. Some board members who should have been blowing the whistle couldn't because their mouths were full of the fruits of unchecked credit-card spending.
Spencer County Judge-Executive David Jenkins, for example, charged $20,000 last year during his term as KACo president, including $464 at the Belterra Casino and its restaurants in Indiana and more than $15,000 at other bars and restaurants.
Someone should have realized that Jenkins' spending was out of line. His predecessor, Shelby County Magistrate Tony Carriss, charged $1,473 on his KACo credit card during his year in office.
But no one except KACo Executive Director Bob Arnold was reviewing his and other big-spenders' credit card bills.
KACo strengthened oversight after the Herald-Leader requested the association's expense records, but the oversight still is far short of what's obviously required.
Nor has KACo's board adopted more than a few of the recommendations for more effective oversight issued by state Auditor Crit Luallen in response to Herald-Leader investigations of similar abusive spending by executives of Blue Grass Airport and the Lexington Public Library.
The Herald-Leader also found a pattern of excess in spending by KACo's counterpart, the Kentucky League of Cities.
At KACo, reporter Ryan Alessi discovered, Arnold and his top four lieutenants racked up nearly $600,000 in travel, entertainment and other expenses in 2007 and 2008.
During that period, the administrative fees that KACo charges county governments (we're talking tax money here, folks) went up by 25 percent or about $1 million.
The higher fees came at a time when rising jail costs were sinking many county governments.
County governments, on behalf of their taxpayers, should demand to know how much KACo could reduce its overhead by holding its executives to reasonable standards for spending.
Update 7/1: Read more on Kaco here.
It looks like many people there have it made.
Labels: Keeping them honest, Kentucky politics
posted by KYJurisDoctor at 11:14 PM
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