State audit of Credit Card Use

[dtwarren]

From today's Buffalo News: http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregio...ry/738695.html

The state comptroller is auditing purchases on town credit cards in West Seneca, focusing on those involving AmeriCorps employees.

For years, the finances of the town’s Youth Bureau and West Seneca AmeriCorps have been difficult to separate.

Mark P. Lazzara serves as director of both, and agreements dating back more than a decade blur the line between the Youth Bureau and AmeriCorps.

Although AmeriCorps — now called Western New York AmeriCorps — began separating from the town last summer, 14 of its employees still have town credit cards.

The organization is procuring its own credit cards, Lazzara said.

[Psycho1]

Apparently some computers were removed as well. Most notable, was Marky's computer.

[WNYresident]

Who moved them? Mark or the people investigating?

[Psycho1]

Who moved them? Mark or the people investigating?

The investigators took them a little over a week ago.

[OldTymeRevival]

The investigators took them a little over a week ago.

Just wait- you'll see more than just the State investigating the WNY AmeriCorps!

[WNYresident]

WHere do they draw the line from just stupid running of a program versus something illegal? Look at the way money was pissed away on the Cole Craft building in Lancaster. Looks like friends helped someone they know unload a building at the expense of everyone living in Lancaster. It was chalked up to bad governance I believe they called it.

[Psycho1]

It was chalked up to bad governance I believe they called it.

I thought it was called business as usual.

[Psycho1]

Well, the report is in and available at Town Hall. Very interesting reading. All you ML fans will enjoy it, not. I wonder how he'll look in an orange jumpsuit?

If you'd like, send me a private message with your email address, as I have it in .pdf format. I would have sent to some of you, but my address book was wiped out by a hacker for Nigeria.

[WNYresident]

State audit blasts AmeriCorps, West Seneca

Cites misuse of funds; lax oversight blamed for town's financial losses

The unusual financial relationship between West Seneca and AmeriCorps has cost town taxpayers more than $400,000 and the town could lose another $2.4 million, according to a scathing state audit town officials received this week.
Auditors from Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's office examined the 17-year relationship between the Town of West Seneca and AmeriCorps, a national service organization, and concluded the town suffered financial losses because it did not have proper control over AmeriCorps activities.

Read the full story in the Buffalo News

[WNYresident]

From the News
* Mark Lazzara, executive director of AmeriCorps and director of the town Youth Bureau, "personally benefited" by using a credit card for a down payment on a car and to pay parking tickets.

Is he still involved in the group? if so why?

[WNYresident]

WNY AmeriCorps is paying the town monthly installments of $7,000 to pay back $804,400 it owes the town. Town Supervisor Wallace Piotrowski said that as long as WNY AmeriCorps stays in business, he believes the town will receive all of the money.

$804,400 / $7000 = 115 months to pay off. 9.5 years.

mortgage calculator

So to borrow $804,400 for 9.5 years at 1% payments should be $7399.55


I went here

http://www.bankrate.com/mortgage.aspx

a 10 year rate looks like 3.75%

So....

So to borrow $804,400 for 9.5 years at % payments should be $8398.39

Why does this "government" service business get to pay a loan at basically 0%?

[Pumpkinhead]

The letter from John Greenan on behalf of Americorps in response to the audit is even more interesting. So all that time that this was going on, his brother Tim was our Town Attorney, and now John wants it brushed under the rug. This corruption is nauseating. I personally feel stupid, as a voter in West Seneca, that I allowed myself to be duped by these people for so long.

And that is a good question, why would Americorps continue to employ the same people and have the same directors, and will there be any federal government agency looking into this, since a lot of the money comes from the federal government?

[Hscout]

audit: http://www.buffalonews.com/incoming/...NARY/audit.pdf

response: http://www.buffalonews.com/incoming/...925_092741.pdf

The Buffalo News was wrong for blasting the entire entity of WNY AmeriCorps

This is their response to the audit:

It is the request of WNY AmeriCorps that all references to AmeriCorps prior to August 16, 2008 in the office of the comptroller's audit should be replaced with "West Seneca Youth Bureau AmeriCorps programs" prior to the report's wide release for the sake of accuracy and legitimacy. Any further request of information or clarification prior to the creation of our organization should be directed to the Town of West Seneca or Mark P. Lazzara directly.

[Pumpkinhead]

Are you joking? All they did was change the name. They are all the same people with a different name. I don't think too many people will be fooled by John Greenan's letter - we know we've been taken advantage of for 12 years. I never spoke against Americorps - thought they were doing a good job. But this is disgusting and pathetic. They should be investigated by the federal government.

[WNYresident]

That's a lot of money not accounted for. Remember when posters were bringing this up and people were saying, nope this type of stuff wasn't happening... yet here is the audit.