D’ville council passes measures to control employee spending

“I move that effective immediately, all spending by the city of Danielsville, with the exception of current recurring contract or utility billing to the city, be stopped without prior verbal approval,” Faust said in his motion. “The approval procedure is to be: $100 or less – mayor or mayor pro tem or council (must approve); $100.01 to $1,000 – mayor and mayor pro tem or council (must approve), and $1,000.01 or above – council (must approve). The life of this motion, if approved, is to expire only at, and immediately upon, the approval of an official city of Danielsville spending policy or a majority council vote.”

Faust said he had revised the motion eight times before bringing it before the council, striving for it to be very specific.

Faust and councilwoman Janice Merk then agreed to meet with all city employees on the temporary spending policy on Wednesday, Feb. 16. In the meantime, city clerk Connie Riley was instructed to place copies of the temporary policy in city employees’ mail slots on Tuesday morning.

In a related matter, the council members discussed meeting with police chief Rodney Christian at their March business meeting, in closed session, to discuss mileage on his patrol car, the number of traffic stops he has made and citations he has written recently and other concerns.

Council Jamie Spurlin and Merk expressed concerns about his logged mileage, noting that he had 712 miles for the month of January, while night-time patrol officer Steve Gary logged 344 miles. Christian explained in a letter attached to his police report that he had a few extra miles on his patrol car last month because he attended a meeting and class in Clayton.

“The question is why did he have to go to Clayton?” Perry said.

Perry said he thought discussing these matters in closed session (out of the public eye) was permissible under “personnel.”

“I think we need to get him in here to do an executive session, that way all these questions can be answered,” Croya said.