October 12, 2009
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News: Maryland Gov't Director Interferes With Audit
A Montgomery County, Maryland planning director allegedly misused government credit cards and then sabotaging an audit implemented to investigate the allegations. In response to a public records request, the Washington Post acquired a report on the pending audit from the Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission. The audit report indicated that Director Rollin Stanley was not cooperative with auditors and did not provided requested information. The audit was sparked by a credit card charge for the purchase of a computer firewall fix. According to the report, Stanley's failure to respond in a timely fashion has impeded auditors from obtaining necessary information relating to agency's credit card records, interfered with scheduling agency employee interviews, and other procedures.
According to the report Stanley abused the government agency's credit card by conducting unauthorized transactions and exceeding spending limits in the purchase of high priced dinning, alcohol, and office furniture. Additionally, Stanley had not submitted an expense report in nearly 18 months and didn't provide proper documentation of his credit card expenditures. Additionally, Stanley had abused the agency cell phone policy by placing personal calls. The audit expressed a great deal of concern over the actions of Stanley saying that there was a "lack of concern" for the agency. Auditors also commented that they believed Stanley was trying to thwart the audit and that his actions could harm "taxpayers' confidence" in the agency's management.
Stanley denied the allegations of credit card abuse; however, admitted some errors did exist for which he repaid nearly $600. He maintains that the charges associated with the computer fix were appropriate because security issues demanded immediate action be taken to correct the problem. However, evidence indicates that staff members were aware of the problem for some time before taking action to repair it. In an interview with the Post, the Planning Commission's Chairman, Royce Hanson said he was confident that the misunderstanding would be rectified soon. He stated that Stanley was a very capable and efficient Planning Director. Hanson also noted that Stanley was taking measures to increase compliance with the agency's rules and that "things have been corrected."