Wasson said Friday morning that - despite a rumor to the contrary - a secretary was not fired. He said the court clerk was laid off for budget cuts. And while money was found in her area, Wasson said the clerk had been off work for over a week with her mother who was in intensive care in Muskogee. Others covering her job put fine payments in her area while she was away and that money was not put in the bank, Wasson indicated.
Wasson said he had no knowledge of any investigation into the matter.
As standard operating procedure, the town may ask the auditor to come in and audit the books, which should be done when anyone handles money and changes positions. He emphasized it would be audit control, and not that the employee stole anything.
Budget cuts
The lay-off of the court clerk is one of many budget cuts in the town over the last month.
He said they have combined the court clerk and purchasing agent position and the purchasing agent has taken a pay cut and is now working a four-day work week.
He said the town clerk is also going to a four-day work week and a cut in pay.
The reason for the cuts? Wasson said the town has its $4 million waste water treatment plant project coming up and the town is not prepared well enough financially for it.
The waste water treatment plant, which is being done because of water standard changes, changes in water quality, and changes in capacity since the town has grown, is the main reason for the cuts. All of those factors created a need to improve or enhance the water treatment plant, Wasson indicated.
Under new interpretation, the town can't just go with a new lagoon, but has to re-do the entire system. He said the project was initially estimated to cost $2.3 million, but now that figure is close to $4 million due to various construction and fuel cost increases.
Other needed items in the town include bringing the lake into compliance with the Department of Environmental Quality, which is expected to cost $30,000 to $50,000.
"The town has postponed things...you only can postpone things so far," Wasson said.
The town also needs trash trucks, and the town has equipment that is failing and in constant need of repair.
"You can only patch stuff so far," Wasson said.
But despite budget cuts, Wasson said, "The town is not broke."
Wasson said he is looking at increasing the town's cash flow by $40,000 to $50,000 per month. He said the town also needs to come up with $150,000 to $200,000 in reserves to be able to fund any problems that may arise.
Wasson acknowledged that when the police force was allowed on Interstate 40, the town's cash flow was better.
"The town is no longer on I-40 for a good, logical reason," Wasson said.
Earlier this year, the police force was banned from patrolling Interstate 40 - not because the town was considered a speed trap, but for other reasons that were explained in an Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (DPS) letter to the town.
Kevin L. Ward, DPS commissioner, wrote in the letter, "Based on the geographical layout of the town...the lack of any school or residential area requiring direct access and the scarcity of retail or commercial businesses and because the OHP has primary jurisdiction for traffic enforcement on the interstate system, I can find no legitimate reason for the town of Roland to be enforcing traffic laws on this section of Interstate 40," Ward wrote.
From the information he has seen so far, and acknowledging his limited time with the city, Wasson said when the town was allowed on I-40, they were pulling in $80,000 to $100,000 in fines per month.
Since they've been off Interstate 40, they are pulling in $40,000 to $50,000 per month.
"That's a pretty significant drop," he said.
How will the town make up for that loss in income? Wasson said it's too early to say, but the first step is what they are doing now, laying off employees and decreasing pay.
While the town just increased rates for water, sewer and trash, Wasson indicated another increase may be in the future. He pointed to a rate study done six months ago, but since that time, dump rates have increased, fuel has increased, along with other increases.
"Everything has to gear back."
The police department was first impacted by the budget cuts. Earlier this month, the police force was reduced by one officer, who went from being an officer to a dispatcher.
Wasson said it was unfortunate that the police department had to be one of the first areas to sustain budget cuts, but he said the department is the most visual and has the most employees.
Even Wasson is affected by the budget cuts. He said his paycheck is less than what previous administrators earned. Wasson also doesn't have a town vehicle, like other administrators in the past.
"We're trying to look at ways to cut back," Wasson said.
