Hayes calls for finance reviews

COEUR d'ALENE - Just a week in, the new Kootenai County clerk is calling for a review of financial dealings in his department, with aims to tighten procedure and ensure county dollars are secure.

"I'm doing it to make sure everything is done according to an accepted policy," said Cliff Hayes, who was sworn in as clerk last Monday. "I think it's important we have people outside the office taking a look at this."

Hayes has arranged for two separate reviews of money-handling procedures in the clerk's office, he announced on Tuesday.

All levels of transactions will be observed, he said. That includes how money is taken, how receipts are written, how funds are checked and the number of employees present for every step.

The move is a response to the felony charge brought against a retired department employee suspected of embezzlement, he acknowledged.

"(The reviewer) is following it through and making sure we don't have an employee wiring checks and reconciling the banking account," said Hayes, retired chief of the Post Falls Police Department.

The first review will be conducted by Jim Simmerman, former bank auditor and retired captain of the Post Falls Police Department.

That will follow with another review by a team from the Office of the State Controller.

The county does already contract an auditor to review the budget every year, Hayes said.

But there are several funds not included in that review, he said, one of which is believed to have been stolen out of by Sandy Martinson, retired chief deputy clerk.

"I want some new people to take a look at this," Hayes said. "We've had an auditor every year, and it (the embezzlement) wasn't discovered."

Simmerman was already hard at work this week following how money flows through the clerk's office.

"I want to make sure the proper controls are in place, that everything is done with two people and there is some accountability attached to that," said Simmerman, who investigated embezzlements and fraud for 17 years as a bank auditor in Northern California. "We want proper procedures in place to eliminate as much as humanly possible the chance of defalcations and embezzlement."

He added that he thinks the outside reviews are wise.

"It protects not just the public, but the employees," the Coeur d'Alene resident said.

All aspects of the clerk's office will be subject to review, Hayes said, including the recorder's office, the auditor's office, the elections office, the court clerks and county assistance.

Commissioner Dan Green said the reviews are important, as the clerk oversees county finances.

"I have a lot of confidence in Cliff Hayes," Green said.

He doesn't think this kind of review would be necessary for all the county departments, he added.

"The other departments don't write checks. They approve invoices, but it's still all run through the auditor and the finance director," Green said. "He (Hayes) has got his work cut out for him."

Sandy Martinson is suspected of embezzling more than $130,000 over 10 years by writing checks to herself from a county account, apparently by taking advantage of a lack of internal controls in the clerk's office.

Hayes estimated the reviews would take about a month or two.

Simmerman will be paid $15 an hour, Hayes said. The controller's review won't cost anything, except for possible hotel or meal expenses.

Hayes, who knew Simmerman from the Post Falls Police Department, said he trusts the former auditor with the review.

"He brings a wealth of experience for $15 dollars an hour," Hayes said. "The State Controller, I don't know the people, but I have confidence that they, too, will identify any shortcomings."

The review reports would be accessible to the public, he said. He expects some policies will change as a result.

"It can't be done in a day, because we've got computers and software," he said.

The review doesn't mean there is suspicion of more embezzlement, he added.

"I in no way want to imply that there's anything wrong," he said. "We have great employees here in the clerk's office."