Wayne County commissioners require monthly reporting after concern over ‘upon demand’ language in Schoolcraft contract

Wayne County commissioners asked county staff on an agenda item about college contracts to ensure contractors provide monthly reporting after staff identified language in one contract that would require reports only “upon demand.”

County staff said the Wayne County Community College contracts already require monthly reporting, but the Schoolcraft contract as written asks for reports only “upon demand.” Felicia, a county staff member, said that difference matters because the county is making an upfront payment and “you don't wanna wait 2 years later after they're spent to determine that something was wrong.”

The commission clarified that the intent of the resolution is to require monthly reporting for both institutions when the county provides advanced funds. Amy, a Schoolcraft representative on the call, told the commission: “That's how we do most of our grant reporting, so it's perfect.”

Commissioners asked staff to correct any conflicting language in the contract documents so the resolution and contract match; staff said they would “work with the department” to make the change. The commission then moved and approved the two items tied to the contract/resolution with the stated changes.

Why it matters: under standard county practice described in the meeting, contractors usually submit invoices and are paid after invoicing. When the county makes upfront payments, the commission said it expects more frequent monitoring to spot problems promptly. The change affects how the county will monitor use of public funds paid in advance to college partners.

Details and context: county staff explained the typical flow is payment after invoice. Because the county is making an advance payment in this instance, staff recommended ensuring contract language requires more frequent reporting. Felicia told the commission the Wayne County Community College language already states monthly reporting; the Schoolcraft contract used the phrase “upon demand,” meaning reports would be provided only if the department requested them.

Commission discussion touched on program overlap: a commissioner asked whether the county’s Wayne Link ARPA-funded workforce program — described by staff as a roughly $20,000,000 workforce initiative using subcontractors to connect people to jobs — overlaps with college programming supported by the contracts. Staff said the programs are in the same “universe” but are separate, and offered to connect program leads to reduce duplication.

Action taken: the commission approved the two contract items together with instructions to staff to remove or resolve the conflicting “upon demand” reporting language so that monthly reports will be required when the county makes advanced payments. The meeting record shows the two items were approved before the agenda moved on.

What was not decided: the record shows staff agreed to update contract language and indicated colleges may choose to submit reports more frequently regardless; commissioners did not adopt any additional monitoring protocol beyond requiring the contract language be corrected.

Ending: staff said they will return with updates to the full commission as the contracts are finalized and to confirm that the reporting language has been changed to require monthly reports when advanced payments are made.