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Lawrence council approves vouchers with corrections, presses administration on monthly sworn financial reports
Summary
The Common Council approved vouchers and claims with recorded corrections and an 8–1 roll-call on one voucher package. Councilors pressed the administration about compliance with a municipal ordinance that requires the City Controller to submit monthly financial reports under oath and asked for clearer, sworn reporting.
The Lawrence Common Council on Feb. 3 approved minutes and voted to authorize payment of city vouchers while raising questions about the controller’s compliance with a city transparency ordinance requiring monthly sworn reports.
The council unanimously approved the minutes of the Jan. 15 meeting. Later the council considered approval of vouchers and claims; a councilor requested removal of specific disputed PR claims and corrections to duplicate entries on cover letters dated Nov. 15, Dec. 18 and Jan. 15. Councilors then approved the vouchers package in a roll-call vote that the president recorded as 8–1.
During discussion, a councilor cited city ordinance 1.2.1.6(e), which requires the City Controller to submit under oath to the council monthly reports of city accounts showing revenues, receipts, expenditures and sources of revenue. Councilors asked how often the controller submits those sworn monthly reports. An administration representative said staff has made a good-faith effort to post monthly financial reports online and that December was still being reconciled; the representative recommended that councilors email the controller with specific questions and noted that reconciliation takes several days.
Councilors said they want the administration to comply with the ordinance’s requirement for sworn monthly reports to the council and asked for additional steps to ensure timely, legally compliant submissions. The council proceeded to a roll-call vote on the vouchers after that discussion.
The council president said the corrections to the cover letters noted by a councilor will be moved to the next meeting and will not be considered in the current vote.
