Northampton County made eight duplicate payments to four different vendors during the period between Nov. 1, 2017 and October 31, 2018. This is one of the findings of a recent audit of the county's checks and vendors performed by Lead Auditor Antony Sabino and Controller Richard "Bucky" Szulborski. The total overpayments amount to $4,623.91. They include five overpayments by the Court Administration,
two by the Coroner’s Office, and one by Gracedale. The duplicate payments were returned.
Although the county has software in place to prevent this problem, the Accounting Manager pointed out that many vendors use the same invoice number each month. This produces many false duplicate payment alerts, making it difficult for the Disbursements clerks to identify actual duplicate payments and increasing the risk that duplicates will be paid. Changes are being made to the software to make this less likely.
The Controller also checked for vendors using a blank address or multiple vendors using the same address. No fictional vendors were identified. What was found, however, is three instances in which one or more payments were made to vendors with addresses that matched employee addresses. "We investigated all three and found that valid reasons existed for all of them," said Sabino.
Today's one-liner: "The shortest way to the distinguishing excellence of any writer is through his hostile critics." Richard LeGallienne
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Wednesday, July 10, 2019
21 comments:
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What vendors in 2019 is the county using that do not generate different invoice numbers via some basic accounting package?
ReplyDeleteThis isn’t the 80s even the smallest contractors use something.
So vendors just accepted and cashed the duplicate checks?
ReplyDeleteMaybe the Accounting Manager should stay off her phone for numerous personal calls and do her job. Oh that's right, her mom is on County Council and protected. Maybe she should get another $20K raise.
ReplyDeleteNorCo’a Accounting Manager is one of its top employees. Any of the Democrats working for Lamont McClure will tell you that. So would any of the Democrats who worked for John Stoffa.
ReplyDeleteI think I am going to get fired from my job...
ReplyDeleteAs a taxpayer, I am thankful that the auditor and the controller found these overpaymemnts, which were returned. Procedures can now be adjusted so it would be less likely to happen going forward. This time the bureaucracy worked and did what it was set up to do.
ReplyDelete12:59, don’t worry lol
ReplyDelete12:49
ReplyDeleteThis is commendable that anybody should catch flaws like this. All I can say is ,I don’t mind my county taxes as I don’t think the county is abusing me like the god damed Easton School District that has contempt of the tax payers .
ReplyDeleteBernie , I m sorry to post here with off issue stuff. But The DA is looking of a man suspected of killing his wife .. I say I can locate him if I get involved. . I always have before . I’m retired and have little to do constructive ,but want to use my talents and make sure I don’t have dementia , The way I made a living doing almost 24 years .So ,I’m not asked to be paid but I think I could find him and help bring him in if I worked as as “volunteer “ for John’s office . I’ve been to both Infanry Schools and Artillery Quilified , So I can think this guy out .
ReplyDeletePeter wait until my story appears please
ReplyDeleteThis wouldn't have happened under the watchful eye of that fiscally ferocious watchdog, Ron Angle. Bernie, can't you convince your buddy to come out of retirement? Let's make Northampton County great again!
ReplyDeleteHow do you know that the person will not be fired? Do you see "Anonymous" names?
ReplyDeleteHaving worked for accounts payable for 17 years, I do know that the program used to pay vendors will tell you that invoice number was used before! But we could pull up the history report for that vendor and investigate! Apparently the workers are too stressed to care as they listen to their boss on her personal calls all day long as I did.
ReplyDeleteHaving worked for accounts payable for 17 years, I do know that the program used to pay vendors will tell you that invoice number was used before! But we could pull up the history report for that vendor and investigate! Apparently the workers are too stressed to care as they listen to their boss on her personal calls all day long as I did.
ReplyDeleteElaine, There is a shortcoming in the software that was resulting in a lot of false alerts. It is not the fault of employees.
ReplyDeleteWhen you see a list of invoices from a vendor with the same invoice number, you question.
ReplyDeleteEven quickbooks has a vendor list that shows invoices and amounts. This had to be going on for years. Hopefully someone is looking back at least 3 to 5 years, put the records are probably gone by now.
When you see a list of invoices from a vendor with the same invoice number, you question.
ReplyDeleteEven quickbooks has a vendor list that shows invoices and amounts. This had to be going on for years. Hopefully someone is looking back at least 3 to 5 years, put the records are probably gone by now.
Where was Oompa Loompa Barron? Asleep at the wheel? Or too busy blowing Mc Clown to notice?
ReplyDeleteElaine, thanks for verifying the truth.
ReplyDeleteDirect pays, no accountability?
ReplyDelete