Commissioners debate creating county purchase‑order office to tighten spending controls

Commissioner Pal proposed creating a countywide purchase‑order (PO) and asset‑tracking position to give commissioners real‑time visibility into fund balances, flag unpaid vendor obligations and track county assets.

Pal said the PO role would act as a “gatekeeper” to prevent work from proceeding without a PO number, which he and the auditor said would prevent late invoices from unexpectedly reducing fund balances. “If we had a PO system…you would have real time numbers,” the auditor said, telling the court that current invoice processing can leave expenditures unrecorded for weeks.

Pal proposed allocating part of the position’s cost from each Road and Bridge general fund and a portion from the county general fund. He said he would be willing to contribute funds from his precinct to support the position and estimated an annual contribution figure for his portion during discussion, while noting the county’s need for stronger controls after encountering unflagged invoices for building work.

Auditor Miss Moore explained the current lag between when work is done and when invoices and requisitions appear in the system and said a PO system would allow the court to see committed costs before vendors are paid. Moore said without a PO system it is difficult to project year‑end carryover with confidence.

Other commissioners supported the idea of a PO system in principle but urged caution about immediately approving shared funding. One commissioner said they needed to review precinct budgets and projected carryover before committing to split costs; another asked that a detailed funding plan and the role’s job duties be returned to the court for final approval. The court did not finalize a payment schedule during the meeting.

Next steps: commissioners asked staff and the auditor to prepare cost estimates, proposed funding splits and job duties for the PO/asset‑tracking position and return with those details for a final vote.