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HARTINGTON — Cedar County government has caught the attention of the State Auditor.
State Auditor Mike Foley informed Cedar County Commissioners in a May 21 letter that his office had been contacted with some constituent concerns about using government vehicles for personal use, possible inadequate county bidding and procurement practices, and a failure to remit to the County Treasurer payments for services provided.
The concerns prompted the auditor to obtain county financial records and other documentation to determine if a full financial audit was warranted.
'Based on the outcome of this preliminary planning, including an analysis of the information obtained, the Auditor of Public Accounts has determined a separate financial audit or attestation is unnecessary at this time, as the county is audited on an annual basis,' the letter stated. 'Nevertheless, during the course of the preliminary planning work, the APA noted certain issues that merit corrective action.'
The Auditor's report included two photos of what appeared to be former County Commissioner Craig Bartels' county truck parked in front of the Ebberson Farms buildings south of Coleridge. The Auditor's office then contacted Bartels in April and asked about the photos.
According to the letter, 'Bartels stated the vehicle in question had never been used for personal use during his time as County Commissioner.' Additionally, he said that if the vehicle had been seen outside of Ebberson Farms, it would have been there to perform county business such as grading a road or discussing right-of-ways.
Nebraska statute prohibits the use of government vehicles for personal use. Any person found in violation of that law could be found guilty of a Class III Misdemeanor.
Cedar County Attorney Ron Temple said he reviewed the letter and has spoken to commissioners about it.
While he felt the allegations against Bartels were 'woefully short of proof,' he still urged commissioners to make sure all county officials and county employees were reminded of all policies that are in place concerning the use of county assets.
'The commissioners are given vehicles for business use, as far as I can tell, and as far as the Auditor's office can tell, he (Bartels) was using it for business use,' Temple said.
The Auditor recommended the county make sure to use 'good internal control to ensure county vehicles and equipment are used only for authorized governmental purposes, not personal gain.'
'Without such procedures, there is an increased risk for not only loss of or damage to county vehicles and equipment but also noncompliance with State statute,' the letter stated.
The Auditor then noted, because this could be a violation of state statute, the information they obtained was forwarded to the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission for further review.
The Auditor also noted, they had been informed Commissioner Bartels allegedly allowed individuals for whom the county had performed services to pay with gift cards. These gift cards were supposedly given directly to the former Commissioner, who then distributed them to county employees instead of remitting them to the County Treasurer, the letter stated.
Other county officials appeared to be unaware of this practice until the County Roads Department Superintendent received a $100 Bomgaars gift card that was mailed to the county as payment for an unspecified service, the letter noted.
'All money – regardless of the form of payment – is required by State statute to be remitted to the County Treasurer,' the letter stated.
Temple said it's unclear why the card was sent to the county and there is no proof that Bartels benefitted from this action.
'It appears a Bomgaars card was sent into the county for some unknown purpose, as far as I can tell it was a show of gratitude,' Temple said. 'It's difficult for me, if not impossible for me, to determine that any county employee has done anything illegal here.'
The letter stated the Auditor's office asked Bartels about these gift cards but he said he had no knowledge of them and 'the county was never paid using gift cards for work that was performed.'
The Auditor also noted six claims, totaling $942,887.09, approved by the County Board between Jan. 1, 2022, and Jan. 31, 2024, that do not appear to have gone through the competitive bidding procedures required under State statute.
Upon inquiry by the Auditor, county officials said the claims paid to several vendors were for gravel and rock purchases. County officials then noted the county does not conduct bidding for such purchases because there are no local suppliers.
'To the extent that the open bidding process may not have been followed in the past, it was, in my opinion, due to a lack of readily available suppliers for certain products,' Temple said. 'To my knowledge, the county has not overpaid for any products that perhaps should have been put out for bid.'
The county will make sure the statutes on bidding are followed correctly, Temple said.
The three other claims were lease buyouts for a tractor and a motor grader, as well as the outright purchase of a tractor.
For a $439,238.09 John Deere financial claim, the motor grader was originally leased by the County Roads Department District 2, which was under former Commissioner Bartels’ supervision.
The lease was supposed to last three years, with annual payments made beginning March 10, 2024. However, County representatives informed the Auditor that Commissioner Bartels chose instead to pay off the lease completely because he had the funds available within his budget at the end of fiscal year 2023.
The Auditor pointed out the County Purchasing Act provides a uniform purchasing procedure for county purchases of equipment, supplies, other items of personal property, and services, and to provide for county sales of surplus personal property which is obsolete or not usable by the county.
The Auditor also noted the statute defines a purchase as: “obtaining of personal property or services by sale, lease, or other contractual means.”
Temple said he feels the county acted within the law with the leases.
“The county is going to comply with the statutory bidding process,” Temple said.
The Auditor again recommended good internal controls be followed.
They include:
• Making sure funds received by the county for services rendered are in a form authorized by State statute and remitted promptly to the County Treasurer; • Making sure service agreements to which the county is a party are memorialized in a formal document that specifies, among other things, the scope of work and terms of payment;
• Making sure all county purchases or personal property, including lease agreements, are made in compliance with applicable statutory bidding requirements.
“Without such procedures, there is an increased risk of not only loss or misuse of county funds but also noncompliance with statute,” the Auditor wrote.
