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Van Dyke Schools Missing $112,000
June 26, 2009:
A longtime employee of a Warren-based school district is suspected of embezzling $112,000, police and school officials have confirmed.
"We found out about it because we were notified by the bank of a banking discrepancy," the district's top administrator told The Macomb Daily on Thursday. "That's how we were alerted and we began to look into the situation."
Though the superintendent of Van Dyke Public Schools promised there would be reforms in the future, many in the community are upset at the lack of transparency for the school's funds. The district has a $4.7 million budget deficit and is in the midst of layoffs and talks of privatizing services. Community members may demand more openness before approving higher taxes or bond proposals; two ideas that are almost certain to be discussed.
Read the full article here.
Cox demands $143,000 to fulfill Brewer FOIA request
May 13, 2009: Michigan Messanger / by Ed Brayton
On April 8, after controversy over Attorney General Mike Cox using funds from the settlement of a mortgage fraud case against Countrywide to fund park projects in the Grand Rapids area, Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Mark Brewer filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking documents related to the distribution of funds from all such settlements Cox had been involved with since taking office. The AG’s office has now responded to that request, saying that Brewer can have those documents — if he pays $143,000 for the cost of fulfilling the FOIA request.
In its response to the FOIA request, the AG’s office calculates the number of hours it will take to search, retrieve and copy all of the documents Brewer requested and multiplies those hours by the hourly wage of the person who would do the searching; the figures are staggering. In the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division alone, they estimate the cost at over $38,000. The agency concluded that Brewer must provide a deposit of $71,926.44 — half of the total estimated fees — in order to begin the search...Read full article
Shorter Detroit News article on same topic
Highland Park Schools ask governor to oust board member
May 5, 2009: "Members of the Highland Park school board said Monday they are asking Gov. Jennifer Granholm to remove member Robert Davis, citing concerns about expenses and his conduct.
'We're sending a letter to Gov. Granholm to remove Mr. Davis,' said board President Jamille Edwards on Monday during a packed special meeting.
'They're just upset and jealous because (their actions have) been revealed,' [Davis] said. He said he has not been attending board meetings because he does not want to get involved in personal politics and bickering." Read the full article here.
Editorial: City needs to resolve public use of e-mails
April 13, 2009: "For the second time in less than a year Traverse City residents who were not reappointed to positions on local boards have questioned whether Mayor Michael Estes has violated the Freedom of Information Act by not making public his personal e-mails.
In an age when so much of our communication is done via e-mail or voice mail or texting or tweeting or whatever, and some of us do work at home (as Estes does), the line between public and private is easily blurred, particularly for someone like the mayor -- a public figure who sends and receives a lot of e-mails in a given day, including some on his personal computer." Read the full editorial here.
Genesee County school boards, superintendents rack up $370,000 in travel expenses
April 12, 2009: "When local school leaders hit up resort hotels and dine in pricey restaurants, the tab adds up quickly -- and all at the taxpayers' expense.
A Flint Journal review of more than a thousand pages of receipts, check orders and expense forms revealed that the top brass in Genesee County's 22 public school districts have spent at least $365,000 on travel since July 2006." Read the full article here.
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