Audit report finds against official

The D.A. does not expect to file any legal action against the commissioner.
By MARY GRZEBIENIAK
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
MERCER, Pa. -- The county has returned a finding against Mercer County Commissioner Olivia Lazor for a $191 travel reimbursement paid to her by a state association, which should have been signed over to the county.
The finding was issued after an internal audit by Mercer County Controller Thomas Amundsen's office.
Lazor traveled to Harrisburg April 5, 2004, in a county car for a committee meeting of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania. Her gasoline was bought with a county credit card. She was later reimbursed for her mileage by CCAP, but never signed that check over to the county.
Unfortunate oversight
In a letter to Amundsen and Auditor Tom Inman, Lazor stated, "The only explanation that can be offered is that my life was in turmoil dealing with all of the personal, financial and legal transactions required as the result of my husband's death. I apologize for this unfortunate oversight."
Lazor has reimbursed the county $191.
District Attorney James Epstein said Tuesday that he does not contemplate any legal action against Lazor because there was "no evidence of an intent to commit a crime" and also in view of Lazor's husband's terminal illness and death during the time period involved.
Criticized for 'swap'
Lazor was also criticized in the audit report for a "swap," which she says was her attempt to stay within her expense allotment for the year. She said she got approval from Amundsen and the other two commissioners before making the exchange.
She added she submitted the expense report at the time with "an explicit explanation."
Amundsen said he doesn't recall approving it and said it is unlikely he would have done so because such a "swap creates a very poor audit trail."
Lazor explained in the letter to Amundsen and Inman that she traveled to Harrisburg Nov. 18 and Dec. 16, 2004, for meetings. On Nov. 18, she used her personal car and on Dec. 16 she used a county car. When county cars are used, the gas expense is paid by the county without charging the official's expense line item in their department budget. However, when a personal car is used, the county issues a mileage reimbursement check and deducts the amount from the official's budget.
Lazor explained that she accepted the $195 CCAP mileage reimbursement for the Dec. 16 trip, and used it as her reimbursement for the Nov. 18 trip so she would not have to charge the county. By doing this, she said, she kept her expense line item amount down.
To remedy the accounting problem this created, Lazor has paid the county the $195 which CCAP reimbursed her, and the county has issued Lazor a check for the same amount.
Policy not violated
The two incidents do not violate any county policy because the county's policy does not have a procedure on what a county official should do when they receive state association reimbursements on trips which they used a county vehicle. However, Amundsen stated in his report that a "common sense approach" is for the employee to sign such funds over to the county for deposit by the county treasurer. He has also recommended that the county policy be changed to state that employees must reimburse the county if their state associations reimburse them for mileage.
The audit of 2003 and 2004 travel expenses incurred by county elected and department heads was started, Amundsen said, after questions were raised by a county employee whom he would not identify. Amundsen said the employee did not single out Lazor for investigation.
Political timing
Amundsen acknowledged that the timing of Tuesday's release of the audit could be perceived as political because Lazor is opposing Mercer County Prothonotary Elizabeth Fair for a four-year term as state Democratic Committeewoman on the May 16 primary ballot. He pointed out, however, that the nonpaying position is not a major political office.
He said the audit began Jan. 20, 2005, and took all summer. The report was not completed until December. He presented it to Lazor for her response in early January and then left for Sudan for a trip with a local church group.
After he returned, his staff was absorbed with the installation of new budgeting software at the courthouse, he said.
He added: "What would people have said if I released it after the election?"