More of Felz’s Accounting Manipulation
For a long time we had inklings and heard rumors that former City Manager Joe Felz monkeyed with the accounting around City Hall and fudged as much as possible while pretending, with the likes of Jennifer Fitzgerald that our budget was “balanced”. It was plainly obvious when the Redevelopment Agency was shuttered by State law and yet nobody lost a job that Felz’s priorities were not with fiscal restraint. It was just as obvious when nobody on City Council questioned it that he was bound to keep on keeping on.
So now we have a new small example of how Felz and everybody down the food chain ran our city (emphasis in original):
“Years ago after the Kelly Thomas incident, Joe had authorized a part-time parks & rec employee to hang around in the lobby during Council meetings for (I’m assuming) crowd control or some type of assistance. I just found out today that these employees’ time, averaging 5 hours per Council night, is being charged to Public Works landscaping, apparently because Joe thought that budget had money???? (not). Public Works has finally gotten wind of it and says no more, which I absolutely agree with. Either this coverage should cease, or it should be charged to the City Council’s budget (for which there is absolutely no room).
Please provide direction to affected parties as appropriate.”
While this looks like small potatoes, it goes to the ethics and opaque way Fullerton’s finances were run and the willful ignorance on the part of council. This payroll game is another case of something which ran for literal years before somebody found it by accident at which point the “Oh shit do something” brigade started worrying about details they long ignored.
If payroll for employees is buried in the wrong departments what other money is being used inappropriately around City Hall?
Don’t expect our City Manager to explain how this problem ran for so long and who is being held to account or for our City Council to ask any tough questions or to even address this or any similar issues. That would be out of character and would require them to be open, honest and accountable.
Accounting fraud is a crime, just like boozing it up and driving your car into a tree.
“The budget is balanced!”
“Fullerton is in excellent financial shape!”
Two real comments from two real people currently sitting on Council while shit like this was happening.
I’ve changed my mind. Joe Felz is the Albert Pujols of failure and embarrassment.
Yup! You’re spot on Chief! Happy Fourth of July you fish slayer!
“If payroll for employees is buried in the wrong departments what other money is being used inappropriately around City Hall?”
If you are really interested in learning about Parks and Rec inappropriately using city funds, you don’t need to go any further than David Curlee’s exposé(s) in previous FFFF posts. Somehow I can’t help but wonder if Felzs hiring a Parks and Rec employee to sit around and do ‘crowd control’ wasn’t either a payoff to someone or simply a make work job for a friend. And charging to the wrong account sounds like something Hugo would do. He certainly has prior practice.
Does anyone remember ever seeing this ‘crowd control’ person at a city council meeting?
What the heck could a Parks and Rec employee do if a crowd got unruly anyway.?? Edge their lawn crookedly??
Felz’s scams were crazy and idiotic because that’s what the council would allow.
Perhaps Fullerton should elect someone with an accounting background on to the city council so that we can stop doing this stupid stuff.
We’d settle for a spine, no specialized degree or professional degree required.
Someone just needs to tell these people “no”.
Landscape has like 5 people and are still expected to do everything from what I’ve heard. I’m sure they’ve been taking money away from others for a long time. Probably more so to pay police and fire, they do cost 3x more
Just wait until we get our new contracts!!!
Julia James too little too late. You almost grew a spine at the very end. Slither off.