2/22/2023: County treasurer in the hot seat
Treasurer: County’s finances are in order
It looks like Kalamazoo County’s financial books are in order after several tumultuous months for the county treasurer. Treasurer Thomas Whitener gave a report on the county’s fourth quarter investments while under oath last night. It’s unusual for such reports to be under oath, but county commissioners required it following months of recurring problems and after Whitener failed to attend the commission’s previous meeting two weeks ago. Accountant Steve Kirinovic of the private accounting firm Maner Costerisan also gave a report. That company was hired last year to help reconcile receipts with the county’s accounting records. He said they looked through every batch of receipts and found some had not been posted on time while others weren’t posted at all. All have now been reconciled.
Whitener withstood in-depth questioning during his report. Commissioners asked him about county funds that weren’t invested last year – specifically, $55 million that went uninvested for months. Officials estimate the county lost out on more than $300,000 in potential revenue because of that. Whitener said his focus was on safety and liquidity rather than generating revenue. “It is very important when we’re investing public funds that we’re not losing that money,” he said. Commissioners disagreed. “I think yield needs to be a higher priority than it has been,” said board Chair John Taylor. In the end, Whitener reported that the county’s finances are up-to-date and accurate as of Dec. 31. The county’s annual audit is already underway.
Road commission election plan on hold for now
A controversial proposal to change how Kalamazoo County road commissioners are picked has been put on hold until staff can take a deep dive into the issue. The road commission has drawn criticism from bicyclists who say the county has been slow to expand bike routes and townships who are upset about county-imposed speed limits. Both say the road commission is unresponsive and an elected board would be better.
Currently, road commissioners are appointed by the county commission. County Commissioner Jen Strebs has championed the idea of a county-wide vote for road commissioners, but several other county commissioners are opposed to the idea. Commissioner Jeff Heppler, who represents several rural townships, said moving to the election of road commissioners could cause more problems than it solves. “We could end up with five commissioners from the City of Kalamazoo,” he said, which could make the board less responsive to rural issues. Commissioners agreed to task county staff with researching the idea and reporting back in August.
