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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
September 20, 2022     Shelton Mason County Journal
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September 20, 2022
 
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continued from page faith in their elected and appointed of- ficials when behavior like this goes un‘ checked, especially by those who were V elected to ensure transparency and ac— countability. I expect the Mason Coun- ty Prosecutor’s Office to review the re— port filed by SAO and take appropri- ate action to hold all those involved ac—' countable. I am grateful for the work done by staff at SAO. State Auditor McCarthy and her team are true pro-' fessionals and exhaust every opportu- nity to work with organizations to find resolutions and ensure accountability. I trust their work and know the com- munity’s best interests are in mind throughout. Their findings should not be discredited in order to protect and enable people in a position to abuse their power.” . According to the fraud investiga- tion report, the Auditor’s Office recom- mends the district “seek recovery of the misappropriated $68,672, including questionable amounts of $95,093 and related investigation costs of $48,500” from former fire chief Kelli Walsworth, former secretary Brenda Wilder, com- missioner Albert Wilder and volunteer captain Bryan Walsworth. Any com— promise or settlement of the claim by . the district must be approved in writ— ing by Attorney General Bob Ferguson and Auditor McCarthy as directed by state law. - The report allows the district to re- spond to the allegations. “The Board of Commissioners of Mason County Fire Protection Dis- trict No. 12 is‘committed to operat- ingtransparently and in full compli- ance with the law,” the response in the report states. “We appreciate the At Shelton Health we combine the personal touch of our-talented therapists with a modern spacious gym and essential equipment. We help create an environment that encourages patients and residents to reach their personal best level of health. c» tlfiAiQTi‘lCMti: management "i .E‘OCaiiy ’Oaned Independent Pharm Open Monday Friday 9am ~ m Saturday loam a 2pm n Sunday ~ 0w» “that the " setters is take assists, tits .. ties as i asst sass Thursday, Sept. 29, Shelton-Mason County Journal - Page 13 Fire 12:. SAO report recommends recovering lost, money .« ‘sa it ,\ a the i .. —Mason County commissioner Kevin Shutty, about the state Auditor’s Office allegations auditor’s efforts in identifying areas of concern and the district is working to further investigate and address the allegations contained in this report. Given the short deadline for providing a response to this report, and not hav- ing access to the auditor’s supporting documentation, the district is unable to provide a detailed factual response within the constraints of the audit re- port format. The district is following the recommendation of the auditor to investigate the allegations, is retain— ing an attorney to assist with further investigation into the allegations and the district will take appropriate ac— tion if it determines that any of the allegations are sustained. The Board of Commissioners recognizes that au- ditor’s report of misappropriation and questionable expenditures is based primarily on an absence of supporting records. The Board of Commissioners is working to implement better record- keeping processes and is working to improve its process of reviewing and approving expenditures to avoid simi- lar issues in the future. The board has already begun working with the IRS to bring the district into full compli- ance with all reporting requirements. PhySical Therapists Occupational Therapists Speech Language Pathology Specialists inpatient Outpatient Therapy *<36o> 42742575“ * " wwwsheltonhealthanolrelrabcom — :32: w .l\ , * 512 w Franklin St, sh‘elton, WA 98584 360.426.3327 We pride ourselves in customer service. loud .. . a :iiliribiiii‘lirtrobb‘llflli‘ , The board believes that once it has the chance to further investigate the al- legations contained in the report the majority of the auditor’s concerns will be addressed by the district’s inves- tigation and the district is confident that the investigation will determine that no fraud occurred.” ' The state Auditor’s Office respond- ed to those remarks in the fraud inves- tigation report, stating “Our investiga— tion was based on an audit of the dis— trict’s financial activity using the dis- trict’sown records. When the district could not provide records it should have had, we subpoenaed credit card statements and vendor activity re- ports to identify inappropriate trans— actions. Our determination of misap- propriation is based on an overall as- sessment of the financial transaction, not merely on an absence of support- ing records. The office of the Washing- ton state auditor reaffirms its findings and will follow up on the district’s in- ternal controls during the next audit.” Other than the alleged misappro- priation and questionable spending, the accountability audit also identified other areas of concern, including con- flicts of interest and ethical violations. Thank you Shelton for voting us #1 Septic Service FIVE years in a row! And thank you Belfair for yotln us “dam septlc'Servrc’e in T Rim years marrow! ‘ We are proud’to be a part of this community! 360.417.61 10 360.275.6«0 ' The report says state law limits the amount public officials can receive to $1,500 in a calendar month, and a commissioner was paid $2,819 and $1,600 in two months in 2021 for pro- viding maintenance services on dis- trict vehicles. The report states the district violat- ed the Open Public Meetings Act, fail— ing to provide adequate notice of meet- ing days, admit members of the public to virtual meetings and hold regular board meetings, including having only One meeting in and not holding regular meetings at a regularly sched- uled time in 2021 and held meetings “inconsistently and unpredictably.” The district also did not properly doc- ument voucher payment approvals in meeting minutes since September 2018, and the total voucher payments shown in minutes were inconsistent with accounting records, according to the audit. . The report also states the district submitted its 2018 and 2019 reports to the Auditor’s Office 496 days and 99 days after the statutory deadline respectively. The 2020 and 2021 an- nual reports were due May 30, and as of Aug. 1, .had notsubmitted either report. i I Fire Chief Kelli Walsworth also misused the district vehicle, using it for personal purposes, such as shop— ping and- going to her spouse’s place of employment in Shelton and hauling a personally owned utility trailer for” a purpose not clearly intended to banefit the district, according to the report. The Journal submitted a public re- cords request to the- district July 21, but has not received a response that it was reéeived or is being processed by the district. coco-omoccoooon PORTABLE TOILET RENTALS t ' see it PUMPlNG a MAINTENAN , Saturday, suckers 9 am to pm “k .- u s ,. &‘ Follow the signs to Don’t miss this great opportunity it shop for handmade am and emits and rainy q dollribus hemmed. in lunrh hr lust 5g: 1 Mason (:09th SeniorActivities_Center Lunch‘Menu _. i M “ 3 . . 4 Swedish Taco. Meatballs Casserole 5 Chill and I Cornbread Terlyakl Chicken 6 .7", _V V Shepherd’s Spaghetti : , Vii/Meatballs Pie Tamale Pie .1 19 Salisbury Steak Biscuits and " 1__,-,,_._t3ravy‘ ,24‘ ' 25 Chicken , ‘ Pulled Pork Brocccli Alfredo _, 26' ‘ Meatloaf V v ‘27 r Turkey D‘lt‘lh' 31 I v Baked Fish ~ Menu Subject to Change, $4 suggested donation for swims Mon'Thurs Noon812:30;antl retrace,” afigéhior Nutrition Program is available due to generous donorsln cur’ocmlfitih 'lt‘y.‘ ' 9' I, Want to sponsor a meal? Please call 360426-7374. r . q 190 W Sentry Dr., Shelton WA 98584