KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Kalamazoo County Treasurer Thomas Whitener faced some tough questioning on Tuesday, February 21 under oath, from County Commissioners who have been unhappy with his department’s performance.
They demanded he produce several reports and that the County’s finances be reconciled after months of unbalanced books, late reports and questions about taxpayer money.
Accountant Steve Kirinovic,who was brought in to help get the department caught up, says there were a lot of problems but everything has been accounted for, and no dollars are missing.
“Getting amounts recorded and reported within the system and so forth, I don’t think that there was necessarily any dollars that were lost,” said Kirinovic.
Whitener himself blamed staff shortages, a new accounting program, and a new state mandated system which had glitches, but says the books are now up to date.
He went onto say that they should be able to avoid repeats now that the problems have been addressed. There had been reports that Whitener, might face further discipline, or even an attempt to unseat him, because of the problems.
He was the only County Employee not to get a raise this year because of the late reports.
reporting from John McNeill
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