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Audit: Athens Co. Board of Elections Overpayed Employees
By: WOUB News Team
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COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Athens County Board of Elections paid back the county after an audit found the organization overpayed eight employees.
Auditor of State Keith Faber released the fiscal year 2018 audit of the county this week, which uncovered “poor internal controls” that resulted in eight Board of Elections employees being overpaid a total of $1,603.
Director Debra Quivey and Assistant Director Penny Brooks repaid the entire amount to the Athens County General Fund on August 8. The Auditor’s office considers this finding repaid under audit.
Quivey declined to comment on the matter but said the Board would be releasing a statement later in the day.
State auditors reviewed employee timesheets and found that the Board of Elections reported hours for a nine-day work week on some occasions.
The timecards used by the Board of Elections are set up as eight days the first week of a pay-period and six days the second week, according to state auditors. This is because the County Auditor’s payroll submission deadline each pay period is mid-day on Friday at the end of each pay cycle.
If an employee works additional time on that Friday, the Board of Elections puts that additional time on the next pay cycle, which can become a nine-day week.
Because of extending the work week, coupled with the lack of internal controls, errors in calculating overtime resulted in the following over payments:
| Employee | Position | Net Overpayment |
| Debra Quivey | Director | $223 |
| Carol Perry | Clerk | $125 |
| Olga Thomas | Clerk | $110 |
| Philip Thomas | Temporary Worker | $143 |
| David Allen | Temporary Worker | $251 |
| Paul Moore | Temporary Worker | $143 |
| Monte Quivey | Part-Time Worker | $429 |
| Carol Simons | Full-Time Employee | $179 |
| Total | $1,603 |
“Sloppy financial organization costs taxpayer’s time and money,” Faber said. “The Athens County Board of Elections must put controls in place to stop their waste and abuse of taxpayer dollars.”
A full copy of this report is available online.