News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Fentress County Commission decided to terminate Finance Director Marsha Delk on Monday.
County Executive J. Michael Cross said Fentress County voted to dismiss Delk on the account of unapproved raises in 2015.
“We found that the last couple years that the Finance Director had indeed given some raises,” Cross said. “And had not informed the Finance Committee, the Chairman of the Finance Committee, myself nor the Fentress County Commission that those had been given. ”
Cross said the new HR Director Becky Crockett brought the irregularities to the commission’s attention.
“We had just hired an HR Director and we moved all our personnel files to the HR director’s office,” Cross said. “Soon after that, she was informed that if she looked at a couple personnel files she would find some irregularities. We pulled those files, she investigated, then turned it into me and we immediately started an investigation.”
According to the investigation, Delk failed to bring the raises before the Finance Committee. Although the money was present in the budget, the money was not officially allocated to pay raises.
Total unauthorized raises amounted to 12 thousand dollars in October 2015 and seven thousand in December 2016.
“It violated our policy precedent on how raises were given,” Cross said. “It also violated our policy of transparency of government, where everything is out in the open and clear. So they voted to terminate.”
The commission voted nine to one in favor of dismissing Delk.
In the coming weeks the commission must prepare for a new director, Cross said.
“Well, we will have a finance meeting this afternoon where we will appoint an interim or deputy director until a new director is hired,” Cross said. “And then we will advertise that position to try to get a good group of qualified applicants to interview. We probably will interview in the next three or four weeks.”
Cross said he hopes to have a new Finance Director before the commission sends the new fiscal year’s budget to the state.
