Extra audit to look into loose ends in Crystal River

By JOSH ZIMMER

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 1, 2000

CRYSTAL RIVER -- Faced with examples of sloppy financial management, City Manager David Sallee and Finance Director Helene Morris responded defensively to criticisms leveled against them Monday night.

During a contentious discussion, Mayor Curtis Rich and council member Mike Gudis raised concerns about delays in the city audit, alleged instances of late payments to city suppliers and a recent fine notice from the Internal Revenue Service for non-payment of payroll taxes.

Rich promptly called for a so-called "light" audit to review the city's finances from Oct. 1 -- the start of the fiscal year -- through the end of February. The city is normally audited for the period from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.

"There have been a couple of things happening," Rich said. "I think we've all been concerned when we're going to get our final audit."

Except for 1997, the final audit always has been completed by this time of year, state records dating back to 1994 show. The city's auditors, Williams, McCranie & Sutton, cannot finish the annual review without all the necessary financial information from the city, and the last records were just handed in Monday, Morris said.

A divided board eventually voted 3-2 to pay for the five-month audit. Council members Paula Wheeler and Alex Ilnyckyj voted against the motion.

Sallee and Morris tried to deflect blame, attributing the audit delay and IRS fine to two factors: personnel turnover dating back to last spring and difficulties in converting the city computers to a new software system.

Longtime Finance Director George Zoettlein's sudden departure last year left the department in a state of confusion that Sallee has not been able to cure. City staffers have been relying on volunteer help, including council member Paula Wheeler, to make the new billing and payroll system operable.

"You have to remember ... we did it ourselves," Morris said combatively. "You never had to bring in a systems person."

Gudis said the auditors should concentrate on the efficiency of the new computerized billing system. Board members agreed the annual audit should be completed before the additional review begins.

Morris said the non-payment of payroll taxes was an honest oversight.

A Feb. 14 notice from the IRS indicates the finance department failed to pay $20,622.92 in taxes. In a letter last week to Sallee that was later handed out to council members, Morris said the mistake occurred while she and staff were dealing with computer problems, as well as the long Thanksgiving weekend.

The original fine of $4,018.60 was reduced to $2,062.29, she wrote.

Later in the meeting, the council approved Sallee's recommendation for a new finance director. They voted to hire Carol Grivetti at a starting salary of $49,189.

Grivetti, a certified public accountant with a business administration degree from Middle Tennessee State University, has spent her professional life in the private sector, her resume shows. In response to concerns from Gudis about her knowledge of public finance, she said she would be working closely with Morris in the coming weeks to familiarize herself with the necessary details.

Morris is scheduled to leave in mid-March.

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