State audit of Credit Card Use

[WNYresident]

Maybe some cash advances went to fix up the town vehicle that got banged up when his daughter was drunk?

Seeing so far what people were telling me before was true... was a town vehicle in an accident where the driver was drunk? If so where is the DWI report?

[dtwarren]

It only became WNY AmeriCorps after the new Town Board started questioning him about his financial dealings, made him move out of the Burchfield Center, and eliminated his job with the Youth Bureau.

It was incorporated in 2000.

[Psycho1]

Seeing so far what people were telling me before was true... was a town vehicle in an accident where the driver was drunk? If so where is the DWI report?

Somewhere, with the financial records of AmeriCorps. Res, this is old news here in WS. Mark's daughter was driving his Town owned vehicle,a bit impaired, and was involved in an accident damaging the SUV. It was covered up, as were many other matters, like cash advances, etc.
As long as Paul Clark had power somewhere, Mark was safe. But... well you know the rest of the story.

[dtwarren]

From the report it appears that this extends beyond Americorps.

The Comptroller did not perform certain fundamental duties of his office. The Comptroller failed to properly audit claims and prepare abstracts, and did not properly record all financial activity. He also did not provide monthly financial reports to the Board, annually audit departments as required, and failed to provide Board members the results of the Town’s external audits.

[Hscout]

I have read the posts here and holding all of AmeriCorps responsible for what a town employee did is completely wrong. At that time it was YB/AC and the credit card was given to one person recognized as a town employee. It was Youth Bureau at that time, not the same AmeriCorps as today and that is what is stated in the response. AmeriCorps as it is today had nothing to do with the credit cards and there is nothing to blame them (AmeriCorps) for. Right now AmeriCorps as it is today is guilt(y) by association because the investigation centers around the card given ML as a town employee. How come no one is asking why credit cards were given to town employees in the first place. If the town issued the cards, can't we say that the town put itself into their own mess by giving out credit cards to town employees for expenses like food, etc. This "extension beyond" should not include the current AmeriCorps as the audit did.

[WNYresident]

I have read the posts here and holding all of AmeriCorps responsible for what a town employee did is completely wrong.

The money went to benefit americorp involved people. There are no receipts for the most part. Said un-documented. Are any of the people who were involved with the group of people who ran the group in WS still involved?

[dtwarren]

The problem with your position is that the town employee involved was and is the CEO of Americorps and Americorps benefited from the use of the credit card(s).

While I agree that this issue may not be limited to Americorps that is not a justification for what occurred.

[WNYresident]

CEO of Americorps

That is who had final say basically on expenditures involving the credit cards etc?

Did the CEO get a check from the town as an employee and a "fee" for being CEO of americorps? That apparently had free riegn into the tax payers pockets?

[WNYresident]

To then put it all on the town’s Comptroller is ridiculous. Mr. Lazzara and his staff make all of these “questionable” charges, but it was Mr. Bielecki’s fault for not checking them? This is the worst kind of spin I have ever seen and I hate to break it to you Mr. Greenan, but your average citizen is smarter than this. But you are right, Mr. Lazzara couldn’t have gotten away with this without some help, so let’s talk about some of the things the Buffalo News won’t cover….

that's no spin. No one noticed the payments going out for unknown items? Cash advances? If the town was paying a credit card bill don't they even look at it? They just cut checks blindly?

[Psycho1]

Res and Hscout

Trying to bring you up to speed on what has happened over these last few years would take too long.

You have to go back before Wally, when Paul Clark allowed Mark to do as he wanted without oversight, and in many cases with his blessing. As long as Mark could make Clark look good in the press, and with the Albany and Washington crowds, he didn't care what Mark did. I think you'd find the credit cards date back to the Clark administration. I would bet, that in some way, Clark enjoyed the benefits of those cards as well.

It's unfortunate that the comptroller issued such a general statement without naming names. It truely blurs the facts in the case.

[Psycho1]

Let us not forget that the Town Comptroller, during the Clark administration, was Mr. Koeller (first name escapes me at the moment) He is/was Paul Clark's business partner at the CPA firm across from Town Hall.

Are you starting to see how things got so out of control?

[OldTymeRevival]

I have read the posts here and holding all of AmeriCorps responsible for what a town employee did is completely wrong. At that time it was YB/AC and the credit card was given to one person recognized as a town employee. It was Youth Bureau at that time, not the same AmeriCorps as today and that is what is stated in the response. AmeriCorps as it is today had nothing to do with the credit cards and there is nothing to blame them (AmeriCorps) for. Right now AmeriCorps as it is today is guilt(y) by association because the investigation centers around the card given ML as a town employee. How come no one is asking why credit cards were given to town employees in the first place. If the town issued the cards, can't we say that the town put itself into their own mess by giving out credit cards to town employees for expenses like food, etc. This "extension beyond" should not include the current AmeriCorps as the audit did.

As the Youth Bureau Director, a Town Employee, who also served simultaneously as the CEO of West Seneca AmeriCorps (now WNY AmeriCorps) ML was issued and held several credit cards issued under the auspices of both entities, as were his immediate senior staff, including its COO, CFO, its program directors, and secretarial/administrative staff. From the top down the misuse and abuse of credit cards became an institutional hazard- it was a culture of its own and the subordinates only followed what their leader taught them. When it came time to reconcile expenses some creative accounting was often employed. While Mr Greenan tries to circumvent and convey responsibility of this matter away from ML and the organization, the fact is the audit is more clearly on target, but yet doesn't quite scratch the surface.

[WNYresident]

Completely unrelated...BUt what political party is the group of people that ran west seneca americorps and now run the WNY Americorps belong to?

[OldTymeRevival]

Completely unrelated...BUt what political party is the group of people that ran west seneca americorps and now run the WNY Americorps belong to?

By and large, I believe the Democratic Party, but there are a Republican or two, I think. With the exception of its COO, the same people are in the same positions presently as they were previously- the very same! Some 12 to 15 positions are the same transitioned and carried through the West Seneca AmeriCorps to it's current Western New York AmeriCorps.

[WNYresident]

By and large, I believe the Democratic Party, but there are a Republican or two, I think. With the exception of its COO, the same people are in the same positions presently as they were previously- the very same! Some 12 to 15 positions are the same transitioned and carried through the West Seneca AmeriCorps to it's current Western New York AmeriCorps.

So where is the paper work for the expendatures?

travel and entertainment ($250,000)

Did the 12 or so people travel in groups?