WINONA LAKE - Continuing frustrations with the Winona Lake clerk-treasurer from the town council, department heads, board presidents and even the public were aired at the council’s meeting Tuesday evening.
The questions for Clerk-Treasurer Laurie Renier - who wasn’t at the meeting in person but online - began with the claims for the month when Councilwoman Ashley McGinnis asked for more information about a claim for $4,950 from Local Government Services for bank reconciliation.
“That is Suzy Bass that I worked with doing the bank reconciliations for the October, November and December and I would like to be able to work with her again here when I’m trying to finalize this year’s bank recs because I have some questions,” Renier said. “She was recommended to me by the State Board of Accounts after I had talked to (Council President) Rick (Swaim), you, and Ashley. I talked to Mitch and Mike at the State Board of Commissioners and they recommended Suzy to help with that.”
Renier said the $4,950 was Bass’ charge “thus far.”
McGinnis said she thought the bank reconciliations were under the Baker Tilly invoices they had already paid. Renier said Baker Tilly had a woman that worked with her, too, for a little bit but she couldn’t continue. Renier then reached out and got Local Government Services.
“We had multiple issues,” Renier stated. “... It takes many hands to do the work because there’s a lot of expertise.”
McGinnis asked why the 2022 invoice was so late in the year. Renier said Bass never posted stuff until the end of March as it took her that long to find some of the problems the town had.
McGinnis expressed concern with that account being “at budget” for the year, but Renier said the bill was paid out of three different locations - $600, computer support; $2,100, other contractual services; and $2,250 out of other professional services. McGinnis said when you look at those funds, they’re at or almost at budget for the year already.
Councilman Jim Lancaster asked if Bass was fully paid up and done, or if their help will be needed to do bank reconciliations every month now. Renier said to get caught up, she needed her help, though she doesn’t want to use her any more than she has to and won’t, but she wants that ability to use them if she needs them.
Renier’s goal is to have everything done through June by the first of August.
Lancaster said the answer to his question then was that “we’re likely not done spending money on outside services to do bank reconciliations.”
“I hope to not, but I want to have the ability to do it if I need help, I have it,” Renier said, adding that by Indiana code she has the ability to hire whatever help is needed.
McGinnis reminded her there’s a budget for everything and now they’re over it.
The council ended up approving claims, including the $4,950, but it did not include fees totaling $3,410 for attorney Jack Birch that were tabled from the June meeting after Renier hired Birch to represent her earlier this year. No council members offered a motion to pay the legal counsel claim, so Swaim said the claim will not be approved.
The council had tabled her claim for attorney fees in June to July to get an opinion from town attorney Adam Turner. Renier asked Tuesday what Turner’s comments were as she has a “past due” notice from Birch for his services.
“I provided my advice to Rick with regard to the ordinance that specifically states you can hire outside services up to $5,000 without approval of council if those things are budgeted, so there’s some question in determination as to whether or not this general legal fund is part of the clerk’s office or separate, and then also with regard to any determination the council may make with regard to the purchase of the legal services provided,” Turner said. “I also said that I did not want to take one position or another having the fact that my fees come out of that same account.”
He said he has respect for Birch and the services he provides, but ultimately it was up to the town council.
Later in the meeting, Park Board President Kristie Maiers had a number of questions for Renier on behalf of the Parks Board regarding finances.
“The appropriation report that was printed out 7/14/23, under park salary for S. Emery shows currently it was budgeted for $26,000. Year-to-date expenditure was $565. So, the Park Board is asking where is Steve’s salary coming from? And, normally, we would be able to answer these questions, but since we don’t receive vouchers each month anymore at the Park Board meetings to know what expenditures are, that’s why they’ve come up with these questions. Can you answer that by any chance?” Maiers asked.
Renier said not without looking into it.
The other question Maiers personally had was a negative under the Park salary and cleaning and maintenance. It shows a negative $1,019.01. Maiers said nothing was ever budgeted in that line so she questioned that.
“If it’s not an appropriated amount, so that’s why it has negative figures,” Renier said. Maiers said she needs to know what it is because it’s a negative figure but nothing should have been taken out of that line. She asked if it was an error in the clerical, but Renier said it was an error in the report.
Another question Maiers had for Renier was on Fund 2302, the Winona Lake Park Donation Fund. Maiers said one report showed a balance of $130,285.74 on July 14 for that fund, but on a detailed appropriation report for that fund on the same day, it showed a negative balance of $85,086.47.
“This is why we’ve been asking for a fund detailed history because I need to know what’s been taken out,” Maiers stated.
Renier said they don’t take anything out of the fund unless they’ve been given an invoice or claim to pay out of it. Maiers said she didn’t think Renier was understanding what she was saying which is why she wished Renier was present at the meeting.
For all the questions Maier had, Renier said she would get back to her with answers after she looked into them.
Park Director Holly Hummitch, speaking on the appropriations report, told Renier that her summer staff line was budgeted for $30,000 for 2023 but it still sits at $30,000.
“So I know they’re getting paid, I just don’t know where they’re getting paid from, is my question,” Hummitch said.
“I know we have problems with our payroll program that Lisa’s been looking into, so we will look into it and let you know,” Renier said.
Councilman Austin Reynolds asked about what access and to what information Bass had when she did the bank reconciliations and if that included access to the town’s information on Gateway. Renier said Bass was not given access to Gateway. Reynolds asked how the process went then and if they could speed up the process for January through June.
Renier said Bass had access to her computer in the clerk-treasurer’s office to do the work. Renier said she was the only person who had access to Gateway.
“I’m just concerned about the timeline for bank recs through June 30 because the budget committee is trying to move forward and it’s been difficult because the bank recs need to be done for us to actually really make any headway and actually plan for the budget workshop in August. The sooner we can get those bank recs done, it’s only going to help us tremendously,” Reynolds stated, adding that by Aug. 1 would be great.
“You have the funds or the appropriation reports that tell you what we have. The bank recs is just a matter of balancing the checks that’s been sent out, balancing with the bank, and you don’t have that information,” Renier said.
In the May primary, Renier lost the Republican election for clerk-treasurer to Heather James, a current council member. Renier had been elected by a Republican caucus to serve as clerk-treasurer after Kent Adams died Dec. 19, 2021.
Tuesday, Swaim asked Renier how she was cooperating with the changeover in the clerk-treasurer’s office and what role was she playing to make that happen. He also asked what was she doing to assist in preparing the budget for 2024 as the clerk-treasurer. Renier said she forwarded all the information she received from the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance to James, Swaim and Town Manager Craig Allebach to work on the 2024 budget.
“Is the budget the responsibility of the clerk-treasurer?” Swaim asked her.
Renier said it was not, it was the responsibility of the council. Swaim said it was the council’s responsibility to approve it, but the clerk-treasurer’s responsibility to create it. Renier disagreed, and Swaim disagreed with that.
Renier said she helped with the budget last year, but the people who worked on the budget last year for 2023 were Allebach, former Clerk’s Office chief deputy Megan Lincoln and herself, with the majority of the work done by Lincoln. She said there should have been meetings with different departments to get their take on what they wanted to do for the year.
Swaim said it was his understanding it was the clerk-treasurer’s responsibility to help prepare the budget for the upcoming year. He asked Renier what was she doing to help make the budget happen for 2024.
“I don’t know what you as the council want for a budget for next year. I have no idea what you’re proposing. I can give you what the budget was for last year, and I would look to see what has been spent to June 1 to know what you need to increase for each department. That’s what I did when I was at the county,” Renier said.
Swaim reminded her she’s not at the county anymore, but with the town of Winona Lake. He said it was very important that the clerk-treasurer play a very strong role in preparing the budget, and that it was the council’s expectation that Renier will assist with the 2024 budget.
The council heard from several residents on the issues with the clerk-treasurer’s office, including Kami Johnson who thought the clerk should be required to attend the council meetings and former clerk Retha Hicks who said it was a requirement of the clerk to help with the budget process.