State holding on to towns' funds

ST. STEPHEN -- Money's tight here these days.

The town's budget for this year is smaller than last year's, workers' hours have been cut, and no one spends a dime unless the mayor signs off on it. Police officers here got new bulletproof vests this month only because someone donated them.

Now, the state is holding up more than $89,000, roughly one-tenth of the town's budget, because St. Stephen is three months late filing its 2008 financial audit.

"We're doing the best we can, but we can't do anything about it," said Lillian Ballentine, the town clerk. "We're just waiting on our auditor to finish the report. Small towns are struggling everywhere."

That is apparent from a report Monday from state Treasurer Converse Chellis' office. St. Stephen is one of 25 towns that has had its state aid to subdivision money, basically funds that the Legislature distributes around the state based on population, withheld for failing to comply with a new law that requires audits from the previous year to be turned in by July 31.

The audits allow the state to see how its money is being spent.

"We must demand fiscal accountability at both the state and local levels," Chellis said Monday.

Scott Malyerck, the deputy treasurer, said the list of towns and cities that had not turned in audits was more than twice as long last week.

The reasons for the delays are as varied as the town: They don't have the money to pay for an audit, their records are tied up in criminal investigations, they forgot.

But most of these towns are like St. Stephen. They are simply waiting for an audit that already is in progress.

Gail Seabrook, clerk and project coordinator for Meggett, said the town recently switched auditors and expects a report soon. Seabrook said no services are likely to suffer while the town waits on the quarterly payment of $15,000 it is due from the state.

The same goes for St. Stephen. Ballentine said no one has been laid off and the police department remains at full force, although no one has gotten raises.

"This will not shut down anything," she said.

Dewitt Williams, a former St. Stephen town councilman, state legislator, district highway commissioner and school principal, shook his head when told the town won't get almost $90,000 in state money until turning in an overdue audit.

"I'm surprised,'' said Dewitt, who served on the council in the 1970s and turned 90 last week. "We always did the audit every year, to see our strengths and weaknesses."

Willie Gamble, a retired teacher who closely follows town politics, urged a reporter to talk to Dewitt when asked for his opinion on the budget. "The town needs help," Gamble said.

John Wade, a retired maintenance worker at the Charleston County Detention Center who was approached at a shopping center Monday afternoon, also recommended talking to Dewitt.

Wade said the town must be cutting its services to save money because his yard on Mosant Avenue floods more often because the town is not cleaning the drains.

Most towns hope to have the audit delay cleared up by the end of the year. Once they come in, Malyerck said, the money will be released without any penalty charges.

"We don't want to penalize any town, but after a period of time, we have to do something," he said.

Of course, the biggest problem is that many of the towns on the list are the ones that need the money the most. Lincolnville has been hit harder than most and in the past month has been in the danger of losing its insurance coverage after falling behind in payments. And now, the town can't count on $17,640 it expected to receive from the state this week.

Lincolnville Mayor Tyrone Aiken said the town expects to have this particular problem solved within 30 to 45 days when its latest audit is finished.

"It's part of the shortfall we're experiencing," Aiken said Monday evening. "We had to be certain we could pay for the audit before we engaged in it. It's under way now. We're going to get through this."

Dave Munday contributed to this report. Reach Brian Hicks at 937-5561 or bhicks@postandcourier.com.