Gadsden County seniors foundation asks clerk to release $27,000; county attorney says board cannot direct constitutional officer off-agenda

Members of the Gaston County Senior Citizen Foundation and several long-time senior center users pressed the Gadsden County Commission on Tuesday to release funds the nonprofit says the county budgeted for senior activities.

Reginald Cunningham, a foundation representative, told the commission the foundation was owed about $27,004.34 from a $40,000 annual allocation the board approved in prior years and asked commissioners to direct the clerk to disburse the remaining balance.

"We're asking the board to go ahead and direct the clerk to give the foundation the remaining $27,434," Cunningham said during public comment (transcript figures vary; Cunningham told the board the shortfall was roughly $27,004.34).

County Attorney David Baptiste told the commission the board could not legally take that action at the meeting because directing a constitutional officer to spend or disburse funds must be done in the sunshine with proper public notice. "If the county were gonna pass a motion directing a constitutional officer to perform a task ... that item would have to be on the agenda for the public to see," the attorney said. "If this board were to take a vote on something like that out of the sunshine, that vote in of itself would be illegal."

Why this matters: the commissioners, senior center leaders and community members said the $40,000 annual allocation supports senior activities and helps the county and its senior services partners apply for matching grants. Foundation leaders said missing payments had disrupted programming and the nonprofit's ability to apply for and match grant funds.

What commissioners and staff said

- Several seniors and community members described services offered at the Gaston senior center — meals, health classes, dementia education and social programming — and pleaded for funds to be released so the center could continue activities without launching community fundraisers.

- Interim county staff and the county attorney explained the procedural barrier: even though the commission adopted a contract or budget line that mentions a recurring allocation, an immediate direction to the clerk to release money is a separate action that must be advertised and subject to public comment. County Attorney Baptiste said he had reviewed more than 300 pages of material on the issue and advised the board that a vote outside a properly noticed agenda would be legally improper.

- Clerk's office and county staff said they had raised concerns earlier about financial irregularities arising from pass-through arrangements and asked that the foundation meet governance and compliance requirements before additional funds move. Foundation leaders and supporters said the nonprofit was working toward self-sufficiency and that the remaining balance was needed to keep programs running and to provide match funds for grant applications.

Next steps

The county's attorney and staff recommended scheduling a properly noticed agenda item or a workshop to resolve the remaining questions about governance, statutory compliance and whether the clerk should disburse the remaining funds. Several commissioners asked staff to bring a clear, public agenda item back for the board and to provide the legal citations and documentation so the foundation and public would have full information.

Quotes

"Because there was no — it wasn't on this agenda, it was too late to add a funding motion," County Attorney Baptiste told the commission. "If the board were gonna vote to direct the clerk, a separate constitutional officer ... that vote in of itself would be illegal."