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Lee County board approves committee recommendation to pursue forensic audit; cost estimate about $40,000 if split
Summary
At a Nov. 3 special-call meeting the Lee County Board of Supervisors approved a committee recommendation to proceed with a forensic-audit RFP selection; the committee favored the Bailey group and estimated the county's share would be about $40,000 if split among three entities.
The Lee County Board of Supervisors on Nov. 3 approved a committee recommendation arising from an RFP for a forensic audit of county records and finances.
An unidentified committee member (Speaker 3) told the board that he, Mr. Kidwell and Mr. Shoemaker interviewed each potential awardee in roughly 30-minute conference calls and, "although the Bailey group was not necessarily the cheapest, they thought that might be the best fit for this audit." Speaker 3 added that the firms interviewed were "reputable" and understood the scope of the work.
Board members questioned whether any bidders had ties to Lee County. Speaker 2 confirmed the recommended firm had no ties to the county and noted the firm maintained an office in Florida; other firms had regional connections, including work in Virginia and in Wise, but those connections were not judged disqualifying.
Discussion also covered cost-sharing. Speaker 2 asked for a breakdown of how much the school system would be expected to pay. Speaker 3 said that, if three entities split the cost, "it would still come in less than $40,000," and that he had spoken with Mr. Dean, who would relay the estimate to his board.
Following the committee's presentation, Speaker 2 moved to approve the committee recommendation; a second was recorded and the board voted "Aye." The board recorded that Mr. Leonard was absent during the vote. The motion as recorded approved the committee's recommendation to proceed with the RFP award process; the transcript does not include a recorded roll-call tally by name beyond the verbal "Aye."
All three finalist firms indicated they would be willing to return after the audit's completion to present findings publicly and to discuss the level of cooperation encountered during the examination. The board had no public comment on the item and then moved to adjourn.
The transcript does not include a formal notice of the exact award contract execution date or a firm-by-firm price sheet; the $40,000 figure reflects an estimate discussed in the meeting and was described as an approximate county share if costs were divided equally among three participating entities.
