The Augusta city check register shows a $500 charge in December 2020 to Mayor Hardie Davis’ government-issued credit card, but city records show no evidence that a resume, or any other document, was actually produced.
In response to a Georgia Open Records Law request seeking a copy of the resume, city paralegal Julia Lugo responded that there are no documents related to that expenditure in city records, beyond information available on the Augusta website.
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Lugo’s responses mentioned Davis’ profile on the city website and Linkedin.com page. The Linkedin.com page does include the same information typically found on a resume, but it follows standard Linkedin format.
Lugo wrote, “After re-consultation, we have been advised that the only responsive documents are the link we sent you on July 20, 2021 (visit www.augustaga.gov, and follow these steps> Home/Government/Mayor Hardie Davis, Jr./Meet Mayor Hardie Davis) and the following link: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hardiedavis/. Mayor Davis stated that there are no other responsive documents.”
Lugo’s instructions link to a short biography about Davis on the augustaga.gov website. If that is what was purchased from the resume service, the 436-word biography cost taxpayers $1.14 per word.
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The “About” section of the mayor’s Linkedin profile contains the following 48 words, including an incomplete sentence at the end: “Results-driven elected official with 14 years of experience in local & state government, public relations, economic development, and workforce development. Proven to be a strategic thinker skilled at operations management, regulatory compliance, and conflict resolution. Committed to collaborating with diverse stakeholders to ensure an equitable representation of constituents”
The mayor has come under scrutiny in recent months for spending tens of thousands of city dollars without being able to document what the money was spent for in all cases. He has produced no receipts or invoices for many of the purchases. Some of the purchases included makeup and headshots for the mayor and his staff, according to Petula Burks, the mayor’s chief of staff. None of the pictures of the staff are on the city website, nor have they been provided in response to open records requests.
In March, Burks said that the mayor’s office was working on adding a list of office staff and their pictures to the city website. Four months later, the pictures and listing of the mayor’s staff is still not updated on the city website.
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Criticism from several county commissioners and calls for a forensic audit of the mayor’s credit card seems to have curbed Davis’s spending. Total spending, including credit card charges and checks cut from the mayor’s office, dropped to just $2,102.86 in June and $2,771.36 in July, according to the city check register. The mayor’s office spent an average of just over $10,000 per month in credit card charges the first five months of 2021.
In previous years (2015-2020), the mayor’s office averaged $2,000 to $3,000 per month in credit card charges.
The resume writing company hired by Davis declined to comment.
Jan April 2021 Ccards by augustapress on Scribd
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