The Augusta Commission will once again discuss reimbursing Mayor Garnett Johnson during the meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 20.
For the past few weeks, the Augusta Commission has been discussing reimbursing Mayor Johnson for purchases he made for the city using his personal credit cards and then submitting receipts to the Finance Department.
Commissioner Wayne Guilfoyle has asked for this item to be placed on the agenda for the Aug. 20 meeting, according to the agenda packet, and is asking for the mayor to be reimbursed for expenditures that were sustained on behalf of the county.
As of June, the requests totaled around $40,000, officials said at a Finance Committee meeting in July, the Augusta Press previously reported. When questioned by commissioners at the July committee meeting, Finance Director Donna Williams said she raised concerns about the process when Johnson’s office submitted receipts for reimbursement last year. She added that Augusta has a comprehensive procurement policy that all department heads, including elected officials, must follow.
State law dictates that local government-issued purchasing cards or credit cards must be governed by a policy that includes a spending limit, Williams said. The commission set a policy with limits during former Mayor Hardie Davis’ tenure. Using personal cards, then seeking reimbursement “is outside of existing policy,” she said.
During the Aug. 13 Finance Committee meeting, Commissioner Francine Scott, who is retired from state government, said state employees were not allowed to seek reimbursement for personal credit card spending.
Other agenda items
Also on the agenda is a request by Guilfoyle to add to the agenda the item of having the administrator or staff prepare a report going back five years with information about how many animal adoptions have happened, how many spay/neuter procedures have been performed and how many animals have been euthanized.
Under the delegation section of the agenda, there are several people listed to speak, including Rahmaan Bowick about salaries and funding for assistant public defenders and client services advocates, Naomi A. Goolsby about neighborhood new buildings and Brad E. Owens about Arts in the Heart Festival fees and local participation.
The Augusta Commission will meet at 2 p.m. at the Municipal Building. To view the full agenda, visit augustaga.gov.
Staff writer Susan McCord contributed to this story.
