By Gary Nelson / gnelson@crossville-chronicle.com
After a 3-2 vote in favor, the Cumberland County Election Commission decided to request an audit of former Administrator of Elections Suzanne Smith's administration and payroll practices for election poll workers.
Smith, who served for more than 30 years as administrator of elections, was terminated and replaced with Sharon York in April 2009 after three new Republican election commission members, Denver Cole, Thomas Henderson and Calvin Smart, were appointed to the board.
Current Cumberland County Administrator of Elections Sharon York said she was preparing for the upcoming budget cycle for 2010-'11 and was reviewing payroll in order to help determine how much to budget for payroll of election poll workers and couldn't get a "match" for the payroll numbers to work out right.
"I had to have some clarification as to how these workers were being paid," York said.
After reviewing payroll sheets and minutes from prior election commission meetings, York went to the Cumberland County Clerk's office and saw Resolution number 406-3, which was passed by the Cumberland County Commission April 17, 2006.
At the time, York was serving on the budget committee of the county commission and remembered the pay scale and the increase for election workers' pay.
According to the resolution, election workers were to have an increase in pay from $15 per day to $20 per day for training; an increase from $40 per day to $80 for election officials; and an increase from $5 per day to $10 per day for election officers.
York said the numbers matched in May of 2006 for the primary, but during the August 2006 election, the payroll figures did not match. Following elections did not match either, York said.
She said many workers were paid $100 per day instead of $80 and was unsure where the figures came from.
"I reviewed the numbers and they were all over the place for the election. There was not another resolution or another increase ... This is law, if you go outside of that it is fraud ... I don't feel comfortable going outside of the resolution and this may require an audit," York said.
She said she was going to the budget committee meeting Tuesday night to ask if there was any action taken, other than the resolution, to increase election workers' pay.
"I know Smith got the OK to do that (pay increase)," said Bob Austin, election commissioner.
"I'm sure we got approval," said Lisa Phillips, election commissioner.
"Well, I can't find any record of it," York replied. "You can't pay other than this (resolution). The numbers fit for the May election, but not August or October," York said.
"I have to agree with Sharon. It needs to be spelled out. I'm calling for an audit of the previous administration ... Who has the authority to exceed pay? Who gave the authority? Some (of the election workers) were paid more," Election Commission Chairman Calvin Smart said.
"I know they gave us authority to do that," Phillips said.
"Some were paid $160 on election day — it should have been $80 ... I want to be fair and pay the people what's right," York said.
"I know Suzanne (Smith) discussed it with someone across the street," Phillips said.
"We need to expand upon this and I feel the only way to prove it (either way) is with an audit ... if it's not done by the resolution there's fraud," Smart said.
Commissioner Thomas Henderson motioned for an audit and Denver Cole supported the motion. Phillips and Bob Austin voted against having the audit and Austin recommended waiting until after York talked with the county budget committee.
Chairman Smart then broke the tie and voted in favor of requesting an audit.
"I can't imagine this being done deliberately," Austin said.
"Me either," Smart said.
Later, York said she looked all the way back to 2000 and forward to 2008 and could find no other record of pay increases for election workers or officials.
Smart recommended York prepare a new resolution for commissioners to consider that is more thorough and completely spells out which each position and worker will be paid during election day, training and during early voting.
York is to have that proposal by the March election commission meeting. She was scheduled to meet with the budget committee Tuesday night in order to inquire about the election workers' pay rates.
