Rice Arena board wants audit, PJ wants accountability

CROWLEY - The Acadia Rice Arena will pay $11,500 for an audit of its 2015 finances and will appoint someone to supervise the time sheets of its two employees.
Greg Richard, chairman of the Arena’s board of directors, asked that the Acadia Parish Police Jury approve the board’s hiring of Kolder, Champagne and Slaven and Co., LLC, to provide a detailed audit of the year 2015.
“I’m the new board chairman and we have three new board members and some of them are saying that the numbers just don’t add up from month to month,” Richard told the police jury during a special meeting Tuesday night.
Steven Moosa, representing the firm of Darnall, Sikes CPAs, explained that the police jury is due to receive the audit report for 2016 at its July 13 meeting, adding that, since the Rice Arena is an arm of the jury, an audit also was conducted of their finances.
He went on to say that such audits are common practice and that a complete audit of the Arena’s finances for 2015 could be found on the Legislative Auditor’s website.
He offered to attend the board’s next meeting and discuss, in detail, any questions members might have concerning finances.
Juror Robert Guidry suggested that the board take Moosa up on that offer.
“Before you go out and spend $11,500 of taxpayer money, let’s see if he has the answers,” Guidry recommended.
But Juror Ronnie Fabacher moved that the jury approve the audit.
“Mr. Kolder looked at some documents and he recommended the audit,” Fabacher said, referring to Burt Kolder, principal with the firm the board wanted to hire.
In addressing the jury, Kolder, while denying he ever perused any Rice Arena documents, said he recommended the detailed audit based on conversations with members.
Guidry’s substitute motion to have the board discuss finances with Moosa died for lack of a second.
The jury voted 6-2 to allow the Arena board to hire Kolder with Guidry and President David Savoy voting “nay.”
Fabacher, Danny Hebert, Chuck Broussard, Kerry Kilgore, Jimmie Pellerin and Richard Faul voted in favor.
In related action, the jury voted to have the Rice Arena board “foot the bill” for any expenses incurred by the parish administrative staff in assisting with the audit.
Concerning time sheets for the Arena’s two employees — Kermit Miller and Melissa Fusilier — the jury instructed the board to appoint someone to “verify time sheets” before they are turned in to the administrative office for processing.
Donna Bertrand, designated secretary-treasurer, pointed out that minutes from Rice Arena board meetings, on at least two separate occasions, reflect that the board voted to limit the employees to 40 hours a week with five hours of overtime, provided the overtime is approved by a supervisor.
“Prior to the new board, they were averaging 40 hours and about five hours of overtime,” Bertrand said. “In January, all of a sudden, overtime has been totalling about 36 hours a pay period (two weeks).”
Bertrand later said that, since February, there has not been less than 20 hours of overtime per employee each pay period.
Brad Andrus, jury counsel, explained that, although the Rice Arena is a separate entity, “the jury is responsible for paying the employees.”
He said appointing a supervisor “is only exercising due diligence,” but that the appointment must come from the Arena’s board of directors.
Addressing the board, he said, “The jury is requiring accountability for anyone you deem fit.”

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