Sumner County commissioners discuss Brown House trust, citizens push for full audit

Sumner County commissioners on Feb. 10 discussed the Brown House trust and whether trustees have followed the trust’s reporting and disbursement rules, while two members of the public urged a full accounting.

At a public-comment period, resident Mike McLeod said the trust’s codicil requires trustees to “report annually to the board and to Sumner County Commission concerning the investment of the trust property, operations of the trust, and distributions of the trust property,” and he told commissioners he believes that reporting “has never been done.” McLeod urged that any review include “a full audit and review for every penny that’s been spent.”

Kevin Baker, another resident in the meeting, warned the commission the Brown House building is deteriorating and said county officials should act before the property becomes “beyond repair.” Baker said he had spoken with the mayor about the county’s communications with Vanguard, the financial custodian that held the trust account.

During the agenda discussion, County Mayor John (first name used in the transcript) described a two-step plan he said he intends to pursue: first, remove a $500,000 sum plus accrued interest and distribute interest for the past two years to local schools; second, transfer the remaining trust funds from the current custodian into a local investment firm. “What I’m gonna do first… is I need to get $500,000 and the interest out of the account,” the mayor said. “That goes to the county. Then once that happens, we’re going to draw the interest that goes to the schools for the past 2 years. Once that happens, we’re going to move the account to a local investment firm.”

Commissioners did not take a formal vote to direct legal action against the trustees during the meeting; the agenda item was listed for discussion. Several commissioners and staff clarified they had heard differing descriptions of how funds would be handled and sought to ensure the county’s next steps complied with trust documents and with bank/custodian requirements.

The meeting included public comments calling for a broad audit and for the county to insist on full documentation of past disbursements. McLeod said he had seen financial reports that showed dollars labeled as disbursed but said he did not know whether the county or local schools had actually received those funds. Commissioners agreed to seek clarification and to have the mayor follow up with Vanguard to get written confirmation of the custodian’s responses.

Ending: Commissioners left the item on the agenda for further follow-up: the mayor said he planned to call Vanguard the next day, and the commission requested status updates to be provided to the committee rather than waiting until the next monthly meeting.