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Commissioners discuss debit-card access and approve keeping three officials on account; staff to produce clearer reports
Summary
Skamania County commissioners discussed updating debit-card policy and signature authority, agreed to keep three elected officials on the county debit card, and asked staff for clearer voucher-linked reports for oversight.
County staff reviewed a proposal to change the county debit-card policy and extend signature authority for department heads to use county debit cards for time-sensitive purchases. The clerk of the board explained the county debit card is used for occasional purchases when an invoice is not available and that four people were previously listed on the debit card (treasurer, clerk of the board, a previous commissioner and one other). Staff asked whether to remove the departed commissioner and replace them or to keep three officials on the account.
Treasurer Vicky said she was comfortable keeping three named county officials on the account rather than adding a new commissioner. Commissioners agreed by voice vote that the card holders would remain the treasurer, the clerk of the board, and the county auditor (or three designated officers); staff will prepare a single motion to update the account signatories and to bring proposed debit-card policy changes to a future agenda.
On reporting and oversight, commissioners asked for better, easier-to-read reporting that extracts debit-card transactions into voucher-run numbers and account codes so the board can track where purchases charge in the budget. County staff said existing voucher and reconciliation reports show the debit-card charges but are embedded in long voucher lists; they offered to export and data-sort a more user-friendly report and to include commissioners on regular reconciliation emails currently sent to select staff.
Staff also noted an option for an Excel reconciliation form departments could complete monthly; staff cautioned that would add work for departments. The board asked staff to propose a reporting format that pulls debit-card items with voucher references and account numbers so commissioners can more quickly correlate purchases to budgets.
Ending: The board agreed to keep three county officials on the card for operational continuity, requested staff provide a clearer voucher-linked debit-card report, and asked that proposed policy and signatory changes be prepared for a future agenda.
