The Indianola Board of Aldermen was asked last week to make multiple changes to the airport and the airport fund’s bank accounts.
Some of the requests were granted, and some were denied, at least for now.
Citing a need for greater oversight regarding the Indianola Legion Airport’s financials, City Clerk Angela Goodwin asked that she, Mayor Ken Featherstone and Vice Mayor Ruben Woods be added as signatories on multiple accounts.
She asked that at least a copy of the airport’s financials be mailed to city hall.
She also asked in a follow-up agenda item that the board update the bank account name as well as address information for the Municipal Airport Fund.
Goodwin, who was hired this past summer, has been attempting to generate an exhaustive list of the city’s bank accounts.
In that process, she discovered the airport’s checking account and a certificate of deposit, neither of which apparently have city officials’ names on them.
The airport board historically has operated independently of the aldermen. That said, the ordinance appears to require regular financial updates to the city that have apparently been lacking in recent years.
“It does provide oversight, it just hasn’t been followed through,” said Ward 3 Alderman Ruben Woods during last Thursday night’s meeting, adding that the airport board is required to give at least an annual accounting of expenses and revenue. “That hasn’t been going on.”
City Attorney Kimberly Merchant told the board that she is currently early in the investigative stage, and she did not have enough information last week to give a full report, but she did note that she has had multiple productive calls with airport board member Tom Robertson, who has offered to give the city anything it needs in terms of financial documents.
“He has been very candid and open,” Merchant said. “He has no objections to adding the mayor, the vice mayor and the city clerk to the account. Nobody is taking those signatures off the account. We are adding signatures.”
Merchant said she has spoken with Robertson by phone mostly, as he is currently out of town. She said he plans to be back in March.
Walton Gresham offered the city some history and context about the airport and its board. He suggested the city sit down with the airport board members before making any drastic changes to operations there.
“I would think it would be very wise of y’all to sit down and consult with those three gentlemen who are still on there and let them tell you what they have planned,” he said. “I can tell you, it’s more of a headache for y’all to take it over and run it than it is to let it run like it’s been running.”
Featherstone said that the city did not intend to take over operations at the airport. The request is to be able to look at the entity’s accounts on a monthly basis.
“We absolutely don’t want to manage it. We feel that we have great management right now,” Featherstone said.
Goodwin explained that she had sought an opinion from the state auditor’s office and was informed that this would be the prudent move going forward.
“We have a checking account that does not bear our signature, as well as a certificate of deposit,” Goodwin told the board. She said she was told by the state auditor’s office that “The city is obligated to and must demand accounting from the airport board. And I was also informed that if the city is responsible for the liability insurance for the airport, then all information must be shown to (the mayor and board) on a monthly basis.”
Ward 2 Alderman Darrell Simpson questioned the proposal.
“If the airport has its own board, why are we digging a hole we don’t need to dig?” he asked. “We’ve got all kinds of other problems going on. To me, this is not anything we even need to discuss.”
Simpson later said he did not have an issue with adding the names to the accounts, and he even offered an unsolicited suggestion that was added to the eventual motion.
Simpson suggested that checks being signed at the airport be signed by a member of the airport board and someone with the city to help shore up checks and balances.
Woods then asked if it was necessary to vote on the issue during last week’s meeting.
“We are totally within our right to do that,” Featherstone said.
Elder agreed.
“That’s why we have a city clerk,” he said. “We don’t have to wait until March. There are some corrections that need to be done.”
Ward 1 Alderman Gary Fratesi, who was present by phone, expressed concerns with requiring checks be signed by airport board members and a city agent.
“If they’re paying their own bills, and then they have to bring them up to city hall, you’re going to complicate their system,” Fratesi said.
After that, Simpson said he wanted to rescind his suggestion about the checks, but it had already been added to the motion.
The board voted 3-2 against the motion, with Fratesi, Simpson and Woods voting no and Elder and Ward 5 Alderman Sam Brock voting yes.
The next agenda item requested the board vote to change the name on the airport fund bank account to the City of Indianola Legion Airport Fund in order to comply with the city’s ordinance. It also requested bank statements be sent monthly to city hall.
“If we are to continue with our city liability insurance at the airport, then the airport needs to be accountable to the mayor and board of aldermen in what is going on out there,” Goodwin said. “I do know that the city has been paying bills for the airport. The airport has also been using our attorney’s time to fight claims.”
Like the previous agenda item, there was some pushback, and Goodwin made it clear that she would not sign off on the account if she did not have access to financial documents.
“I will tell the department of the treasury for the state of Mississippi that I do not have oversight over that account, and I have nothing to do with it. I will not sign off on anything,” she said.
Simpson cautioned the board about the move.
“If we did the statements, that means we have to take over the accounting, all of the accounting,” he said.
Goodwin and Simpson debated the need for the motion, which led to a debate as to whether the airport funds have routinely appeared in city budgets in years past.
The board voted last month to add airport funds to the fiscal year 2024 budget.
Accounting contractor Dr. Phyllis Rhodes, who was present by phone, said that airport funds were not reflected in the 2020, 2021, 2022 or 2023 budgets.
Fratesi then interjected, “We just voted to put it in the budget, so now we’ve created the problem of oversight by our city clerk by us putting it in the budget. If we removed it from the budget, she wouldn’t have to worry about having the oversight.”
Elder made the motion exactly how it appeared on the agenda. It was seconded by Brock and it passed 3-2, with Woods, Elder and Brock voting yes and Fratesi and Simpson voting no.
