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Bonner County Ambulance Board delays vote on outsourcing bookkeeping; schedules attorney review
Summary
The Bonner County Ambulance Service District board postponed a decision on a proposed bookkeeping and payroll contract with Jennifer R. Wyman LLC and agreed to continue internal transition work while the district—s attorney reviews the contract. The proposed contract would begin July 1 at $1,200 per month plus a $600 setup fee.
The Bonner County Ambulance Service District board on Thursday postponed action on a proposed bookkeeping and payroll services agreement with Jennifer R. Wyman LLC and set a date for further review by the district's attorney, while allowing internal transition preparations to continue.
The agreement presented would have the contractor provide bookkeeping and payroll services starting July 1 for $1,200 per month plus a one-time $600 setup fee. Board members raised questions about auditing, ownership and access to financial software, bank-account signers, and whether the contractor—s current desktop software would need to move to a cloud-based platform for county and auditor access.
Board members and district staff said they want an attorney familiar with ambulance and taxing-district organization to review the scope of services and contract terms before signing. Because the contract packet omitted Exhibit A (the detailed scope of services), commissioners and staff also discussed clarifying who pays for a web-based accounting subscription, whether auditors and the county treasurer would retain interim access for continuity, and how to execute a clean separation from county bookkeeping functions.
During the discussion the board agreed it was appropriate to begin internal work to prepare for a transition—for example, coordinating handoff steps with the clerk—s and treasurer—s offices and notifying the bank—but not to sign or fully approve the outside contract until legal review is complete. The board set a continuation date to revisit the item on June 9, after the district's attorney is expected to review the contract and scope.
District staff described technical and operational details the contractor would need to address: converting to a cloud-based accounting platform (staff estimated a subscription in the neighborhood of $119 per month), ensuring compatibility with Munis (the county financial system), and confirming whether the contractor would facilitate external auditing and what additional fees, if any, that would create. Staff also noted the contractor will need time before July 1 to perform setup work with auditors and the treasurer.
No formal vote approving the contract was taken; the board instead agreed to continue the item to allow attorney review and to return with a packaged recommendation that includes the contract, the chosen bank arrangement, and the software solution required for the district's records.
Next steps identified by the board included having the ambulance district contact the attorney of record with specific questions about the organizational transition and contractual scope, preparing a cloud-based accounting platform the district will purchase, clarifying invoice and payment terms (including a suggested grace period), and developing a timeline for transferring bank-account signers and data access.
The board also discussed broader budget implications of separating financial functions from county offices, including adding bookkeeping and attorney fees into future forecasts so the ambulance district can plan for ongoing operational costs.
