MADISON TOWNSHIP — Citing several problems with the township’s 2020 financial report, members of the Madison Township Advisory Board declined to approve it.
The board held a two-hour meeting Wednesday night at the township’s fire station on Landersdale Road.
While no money is unaccounted for at the township, board chairman Larry Ellis and members Jim Johnson and Amy Russell were not happy with the way some items were accounted for last year.
The board reviewed the 31-page report line by line.
Part of the problem was the township lost its clerk well into 2020.
Denise McClure has been hired to do the job.
McClure told board members that while she has experience in accounting, she is unfamiliar with the bookkeeping system used by the township.
In 2020, the township received funding to help pay for expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and there were questions about how the funding was accounted for.
There were several voided checks from 2020 and questions on why the checks were voided and how the money was replaced back into the township’s accounts.
A member of the audience questioned why some checks were written in 2021 with 2020 dates on them.
Several expenses for 2020 were questioned. Some expenses were for ongoing improvements to the two fire stations the township has.
After more than a hour of discussion, the board voted 3-0 to not approve the report. The financial report will now be sent to the state without board approval
Township trustee Scott McDonough and McClure said they will work to get the answers to the questions the board had before the next meeting.
McClure said anyone with questions about the township’s financial report may call her at the clerk’s office at 317-834-6027.
Fire chief questioned
In 2019, the township’s fire department received approval from the board for its capitol improvements plan.
One section of that plan called for the replacement of vehicles used by the department’s battalion chiefs.
One vehicle was to be replaced in 2020 if there was funding in the cumulative fire fund available for it.
According to township fire chief Mike Lang, there was funds available for the vehicle so the department purchased it.
Lang said it would be replacing a 10-year-old vehicle, which would be used as a pool car.
Board members felt that Lang should have informed them of his intent to purchase the vehicle.
They felt that since the fire department was planning to purchase new radios and medical equipment with funding from the cumulative fire fund, the vehicle’s purchase should have been delayed.
As for the new radios and medical equipment, the board discussed the purchasing and financing of the equipment.
Lang said the current radios are no longer made by the company.
He said anytime one has to be repaired, it is sent out of state to a repair facility, which has to wait for used parts to become available before the radio can be repaired.
He said the department has used those radios for more than 10 years.
The new radios would come from Motorola.
The department will be purchasing 40 portable radios and 14 base units.
With supporting equipment and programming, the total cost will be around $245,000.
Lang said the department has the same problems with their medical monitor/defibrillators.
The current monitors are more than 10 years old and are no longer maintained by the company.
Lang said the three new monitors/defibrillators along with the 14 new AEDs will cost around $133,300.
The chief said he had found a place, Republic First National, that had the best terms for a loan for the purchase of the equipment.
Lang said the loan would be for $365,000 for five years.
The township would have to make two payments a year of around $40,000 each.
The interest rate would not be more than 3.99 percent per year.
The money for the loan would come from the cumulative fire fund.
Lang said they should be able to make the equipment last for at least 10 years.
Board members approved the purchase of the equipment and the loan to pay for it.
They did caution the chief that for the next five years, nearly half of the money the township receives for the cumulative fire fund would be used to pay the loan.
No big hits for township relief
McDonough said at this time, the requests for help from residents has not jumped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said there are other places for people to get financial assistance.
The trustee said he does not plan to open the office until the county opens its offices.
He said the township will follow what the county does when it comes to reopening.
At the end of the meeting, board members said they would like to see better coordination between the departments and the board.
The want everyone to “be on the same page” when it comes to making decisions.
They asked Lang about revisiting his capitol improvement plan to see if changes should be made.
The board has not schedule a meeting for March.
~ By Keith Rhoades | Reporter | Published February 26, 2021 in The Reporter Times