School workers get credit

Some school board members fear that new credit cards given to Charleston County school employees will be used to make scandalous and wasteful purchases on the district's dime.

But school officials and other board members say the cards will be closely monitored and make the district more effective by streamlining purchases, saving money and reducing paperwork.

Up to 600 Charleston County school employees will get credit cards to make school-related purchases of $1,500 or less. School board members were split about whether the district should approve the credit cards, but they agreed last week to implement the program.

Some school board members say it opens the door for misspending. Board member Brian Moody cited a recent Washington Post article that chronicled federal employees using cards to gamble, buy lingerie and pay for online dating services.

"You're setting future boards up for a very embarrassing thing," Moody told board members.

Board member Gregg Meyers asked for strict language to be added to the district's card use policy that also holds responsible supervisors of employees who misspend, and potential consequences include losing their jobs.

Meyers said he thought Moody eventually would be right in his prediction, and it would be good for the district to be able to put the misspending in context and show the benefits and savings the program created, he said.

Board member Ray Toler liked the idea of the cards, particularly for maintenance workers who have to call in purchase orders to buy items needed for repairs. He said the current system is time-consuming and can require workers to travel further to get supplies. The new system will be cheaper, and purchases will be easier to track, he said.

Members voted for the program 5-4. Vice Chairwoman Nancy Cook and members David Engelman, Moody and Arthur Ravenel Jr. were the opposing votes.

Employees who will get credit cards will be those who make purchase-order requests, such as school bookkeepers and secretaries, maintenance workers and district staff. The cards will prohibitemployees from certain uses, such as going to an ATM or buying from a liquor store. All card holders will be trained and will sign an agreement about what they can and can't do, said Fred Feil, the district's director of contracts and procurement services.

The use of credit cards isn't uncommon among local and state government agencies. City of Charleston employees began using procurement cards three months ago, and the city plans to give out up to 100 cards. About 1,500 people work for the city.

The city's system is modeled after the county's system, which has a strong track record since employees started using the cards in June 2000, said Steve Taylor, the county's procurement and contracts director. About 1,300 of its 2,200 employees have county credit cards with a limit of $2,500, and nearly half of those are used by sheriff's deputies who can only buy gas.

He could recall only two instances in nearly eight years that the cards were misused. One involved an employee buying groceries, and another was so long ago that Taylor couldn't remember the offense. Both were for less than $500, and both involved disciplinary consequences, he said.

"It's really about having the right controls," he said. "It's saved the taxpayers a lot of money."

This is the first time the Charleston County School District will use these credit cards. Charleston school officials tested its system through a pilot program last July that involved about 50 cards in 10 schools and in two maintenance offices. The cards have been used 1,400 times for more than $400,000, and officials estimate about $94,000 has been saved.

No one used the card to make an unauthorized purchase during that time, Feil said. But problems included one person trying to buy a legitimate item that cost more than the card's credit limit and maintenance workers not turning in paperwork during the required time frame, he said.

Roughly 90 percent of the district's purchase orders are for under $1,500, but those purchases represent only 8 percent of the money spent on purchase orders. The procurement cards will free district staff from spending unnecessary time on routine and small purchases and become more strategic in planning for big purchases, Feil said. District officials will be able to leverage the district's purchasing power by buying items, such as paper towels or toilet paper, in bulk, he said.

Reach Diette Courrégé at dcourrege@postandcourier.com or 937-5546.