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Hope Mills leaders defend emergency spending after state audit flags financial controls
Summary
The Hope Mills Board of Commissioners and town manager responded to a 66-page Office of the State Auditor investigative report, defending emergency safety spending for schools and infrastructure while pledging corrective actions to strengthen internal controls. Residents expressed anger at the findings and called for accountability.
The Hope Mills Board of Commissioners addressed fallout from a 66-page investigative report by the Office of the State Auditor during its May 4 meeting, with elected officials and the town manager defending urgent public-safety spending and promising changes to procedures flagged by auditors.
Mayor Jesse Bellflowers told residents the most serious expenditures were tied to school safety and police operations. "We took on that mission to provide safety for our schools," Bellflowers said, describing startup costs for a school resource officer program, vehicle purchases and a police data server as the principal drivers of a roughly $1.2 million draw on reserves. He said some spending "was…
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