Adding accountability

The Kootenai County Clerk's Office has made more strides in tweaking operations to boost accountability and protect every dollar handled, said Clerk Cliff Hayes.

Some changes are simpler than others.

Like time cards.

Only some employees in the office had been filling them out, Hayes said.

"There was nothing recording the time the person started work or ended, or when they went to lunch," he said.

Seems like a small matter.

But it's federal law, Hayes said, under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

All 83 Clerk's Office employees are clocking in now, he added.

"It's a protection for the county," said Hayes, the former Post Falls police chief. "If an employee says they worked more hours than we reported on a time card, we have something to back up what was worked."

Other improvements are more far reaching, like amping up monitoring of how county funds are handled.

After visiting the roughly 20 county departments that handle cash, Hayes said, he noticed discrepancies in how the dollars were counted.

"We were not seeing double counts. Some offices were receiving money by one person, and that same person was then counting and then turning it over to the Auditor's Office," he said.

Now, he said, cash at every department is counted by two people. The county ensures that money handled by one individual early in the day is later transferred to someone else.

"We have improved the process to both protect the county and the employee," he said.

The new requirements have been well received, said Deputy Clerk Pat Raffee.

"Most of the employees have mentioned to me that that's an enormous relief," she said. "There's a responsibility that goes with cash. And if you're not clear on the best procedures on handling cash, it can be nerve wracking."

Cracking down on time sheets has made a real difference in productivity management, Raffee added.

"We're only looking to be able to predict the workflow, and know how many people are available for various tasks in every department," she said, adding that it was overtime-exempt employees who hadn't been tracking their hours.

Hayes also wants to ensure every dollar is accounted for within each department, he said.

So the Clerk's Office will be conducting random quarterly audits, he said.

"If you have somebody who has taken $20 for lunch and is paying it back the next day, you wouldn't necessarily find that if you announced your scheduled audit," Hayes said. "So we go in unscheduled."

Such extra controls are valid safeguards, said Commissioner Todd Tondee.

"Within his (Hayes') department and all departments, it's always good to look at cash management processes," Tondee said.

The state Controller's Office recent review of all financial procedures at the Clerk's Office should provide a report of findings shortly, Hayes said.

But county residents will soon be able to track the county's financial dealings themselves.

In roughly two weeks, the county website will begin posting all the county's payables, Hayes said.

"Everything we buy or pay for will be listed," he said, adding that it will be presented in a format everyone can understand.

Tondee said he is pleased the information will be available online, but reminded that the public can already access that information with a public records request.

"This just saves them a step," Tondee said. "Our books are always open."

Hayes was elected clerk last November, and was sworn in this January.

Former Clerk's Office employee Sandy Martinson was recently charged with grand theft for allegedly embezzling $139,000 from the county over a 10-year period. Martinson pleaded not guilty last week.

Raffee said she has noticed higher self-esteem among Clerk's Office employees lately.

"I think everyone was kind of bruised by the Sandy Martinson embezzlement," she said. "There seems to be an increased pride in association with this particular division, and I'm not sure how much that is Cliff and how much is just a more positive outlook. I think it's come from a lot of different things, and that Cliff is an excellent leader."