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County auditor warns commissioners they may be personally liable for two unsigned change orders; commissioners rescind orders and direct budget amendment
Summary
Christian County Auditor told the commission that two change orders executed with effective dates before available appropriations fail statutory certification and therefore are not binding on the county; the commission voted to rescind the two change orders and begin a 10-day public budget-amendment process.
County Auditor Miss Amy told the Christian County Commission that two contract change orders for a county campus project lack the required pre-certification and therefore are not legally binding on the county.
“Unless the accounting officer certifies the purchase first, the officer making the purchase is liable personally and on his bond,” Miss Amy told commissioners, citing the Revised Statutes of Missouri. She said the county therefore “is right now on the hook personally for a hundred and $4,723.36 under the change orders that were approved and signed.”
Amy explained the legal test she used: a contract imposing a financial obligation on the county must be in writing, must have sufficient appropriation remaining, must have a sufficient fund balance, and must bear the accounting officer’s certification. She said the change orders she reviewed did not meet all four criteria and that her office cannot retroactively certify obligations.
Auditor Amy laid out a cure path: commissioners could rescind the change orders, make a budget amendment available to the public for 10 days, and then vote to amend the budget if additional unanticipated revenue is confirmed. Only after an approved amendment could staff ask vendors to reissue change orders for commission approval.
Commission discussion focused on process reforms to prevent similar problems. Commissioners said they had assumed projects would come to the auditor before commission approval and asked staff to create a checklist or form requiring auditor certification before items reach the commission. Purchasing staff volunteered to draft a change-order form that shows the original purchase order amount, change order amounts, description, and required approvals including department head and auditor signatures.
County staff and commissioners agreed on short-term remedies: rescind the two change orders now and proceed with a proposed budget amendment process (laid on the table for 10 days) so the commission can later vote on the amendment. The commission voted in favor of rescinding the change orders and instructed staff to lay a proposed amendment on the table for public review for 10 days before any payment or reauthorization.
Commissioners also discussed use of “unencumbering” some funds for work not yet performed so that critical work can continue while the formal amendment is prepared.
No payments were approved at the June 5 meeting for the disputed change orders; the auditor said invoices she has received under those purchases “is not payable by the taxpayers, only the personal funds of the commissioners” unless the budget amendment is completed and the change orders are reissued and approved.
