Not All Thieves Uses Guns And Knives

 The word "steal" as a transitive verb means to take or appropriate without right or leave and with intent to keep or make use of wrongfully. 

These are some of the findings from the State Audit ending 30 June 2012, and are found under Finding 12.09 "Questioned Cost In Use Of Federal Special Education Funds". 

The full Audit can be found on the State Comptroller's sight, I have condensed this finding to simple terms for easy understanding. You decide if a thief was involved and allowed to be gotten away with. You decide how this could be viewed in any reasonable way as anything other that outright fraud.

14 Feb. through 17 Feb. 2012  the Director of Special Education, two special education employees and two contracted services providers attended a seminar at the Opryland Hotel.

Travel expenses of all participants including mileage and lodging were reimbursed from federal Funds. Circular A-87 describes costs which are allowable, reasonable and necessary.

The following are cost that were deemed questionable.

A) The travel expenses for the two purported contracted services providers, $99.00 mileage, $305.00 meals, $682.00 lodging "were inappropriately paid".  Contracted services providers are not eligible to receive payments for travel or lodging or wages for services not contracted for. 

B) Five rooms were obtained at the Opryland hotel four at a cost of $137.00 each per day while the Director's room cost $202.00 per night. "The additional cost of $195.00 of the director's room  is questioned". Other than simple arrogance what reason would there be for the Director to take a room costing almost $70.00 a night more than the other participants with her?

C) Meals charged to a school credit card included one breakfast at $25.00. and Dinner for five on 15 Feb. at a cost of $381.00 plus $65.00 tip. Folks that averages out to be over $75.00 each for one meal almost $90.00 each including tip. Now, I have eaten at the Opryland Hotel and while it is expensive it would take several bottles of wine or a large number of mixed drinks to push one meal above $75.00. Apparently spending other people's money comes very easy for some.

D) The Special Education Director requested reimbursement for travel to Nashville for which she was paid twice for it.

A Special Education employee requested and received payments that exceeded receipts submitted.

E) There were "numerous instances where the Special Education Director and employees claimed mileage reimbursements for travel to and from home".  With regular classroom teachers having to pay for some classroom supplies out of their own pockets, it must be nice to collect mileage of over $.45 a mile for coming to work and going home. 

F) Some personnel were reimbursed for mileage at the rate of $.46 while others were reimbursed at the rate of $.47 and even $.52 a mile. 

These are just the items found in procedural audit under one finding. Had the audit actually been comprehensive as requested by commissioners and citizens what would have been revealed. I believe a comprehensive audit would show massive violations and missing funds but we may never know because the ones who are most apt to be the violators are also the ones who determine what kind of audit is done.