By GINA KINSLOW
HORSE CAVE — Horse Cave’s mayor has agreed to sign “under reservation” the city’s “financial statements for the last six months of 2006 and the first six months of 2007.”
Mayor Odell Martin had previously stated he would not sign any documents pertaining to city business that did not occur under his watch as mayor and that included the city’s 2006-07 financial audit and any letters pertaining to the closing out of grants for the American Cave and Karst Museum improvement project.
When asked why he decided to sign the documents, Martin said, “I don’t have any comments to make. The records speak for themselves.”
While Martin used the terms “financial statements,” he didn’t actually say he was going to sign the audit’s management representation letter. Without the letter, the city’s 2006-07 audit is not technically considered to be complete, even though the audit work was completed at the end of January. Martin must sign the management representation letter before the audit can be presented to the council for approval.
Councilman Randall Curry, however, said he took it for granted that Martin was talking about the city’s 2006-07 audit.
“I just took it as such,” he said. “We’ve got the two grants and the audit that have not been signed.”
The council had not seen a copy of the report prior to Monday night’s meeting, and Curry said it wasn’t given much time to review the report during the meeting.
“Everybody saw it at the same time,” he said. “We all took it and took it home.”
Councilman David Lindsey said he hasn’t had enough time to sit down and read it in order to form an opinion about it.
“I’ve looked at it a little bit. I guess I’m going to look at it some more,” he said. “What he’s doing is pointing fingers at people. I can’t believe that there’s anything wrong with the previous administration with all the business that went on.”
The Horse Cave City Council agreed to enter the report into the council’s minutes.
In the report Martin said “several of the transactions behind the financial statements appear to have very serious irregularities. These irregularities involve potential violations of Kentucky Revised Statutes and a failure to properly steward taxpayer dollars. My legal responsibilities as mayor prevented me from signing financial statements without reporting these items.”
He also pointed out that when he took office in January 2007 he received bills for guns and ammunition purchased by the city.
“At the time, I caused them to be paid because the city should make good on its obligations. These purchases were made during the prior administration,” he said in the report.
Upon his further investigation, he said he learned the amount of the purchases exceeded the available amount in the city’s drug seizure fund. A sum of $8,260.83 for the purchases had to be paid with monies from other funds. Martin pointed out the city council did not approve the purchases and the money was not allocated in the city’s budget. Martin was a member of the city council prior to being elected mayor.
“We actually had a deputy sheriff from Metcalfe County, Kevin Thompson (e.g. Transaction 1-15548), charging police body equipment against Horse Cave’s general fund in the amount of $1,281.27,” Martin said in the report. “This is a problem in terms of the financial management of the city and it is a problem legally.”
Martin also said the city’s park project came in over budget and that he was uncomfortable with “signing any certification at this time.”
But Curry doubts the issue will arise again during future council meetings.
“We’ve asked him to sign the documents so we can move forward,” Curry said. “Hopefully, this is a step in the right direction.”
