The Parkville Board of Aldermen has begun to take steps intended to fix problems outlined in a recent audit.
On Tuesday night, the board voted to hire Shawn Burns as the city’s accounts receivable manager and to promote Lore Meyers to accounts payable/human resource manager.
Loretta Stevens was terminated as the city’s collector during a Dec. 30 executive session by the board. At the time, Sean Ackerson, assistant city administrator said the action was taken because of a recent audit showing the city needed more checks and balances in the receivable department.
The results of the audit showed the auditors had concerns about the “segregation of duties” in the collector’s office.
In a memo provided to the board, Shannon Thompson, city administrator, explained why the hire and promotion were being made.
“As recommended by the city’s auditors and discussed with finance committee, there is a need to reassign job responsibilities for personnel within the finance department. It is suggested to separate duties related to collection of receivable and the duties related to the payments of monies owed by the City.”
The memo says Meyers will be responsible for “payables, human resources, and payroll” while Burns will be responsible for “monies collected and owed to the city.”
During the meeting, Gerry Richardson, mayor, also said the city intends to have an outside accounting firm work for the city to look over the collector’s department.
Thompson’s memo describes the accounting firm’s position as “to review the monthly reports, balance sheets, and any necessary questions that may arise.”
After the meeting, Thompson said she expects the outside accounting firm to be hired by the board soon.
“This will make sure we have internal controls and a clear separation of duties,” said Thompson.
Stevens had a salary of $46,475 in her position. The city will pay Burns an annual salary of $30,000. Meyer will have a salary of $32,000.
