Acting controller releases audit criticizing Washington County鈥檚 Real Estate Expo
Report claims March 12 event lost more than $51,000
An audit by Washington County’s acting controller revealed that the county spent more than $100,000 on last month’s Real Estate Expo, with revenue from sponsorships and vendor fees falling well short for the event to break even.
Acting Controller Heather Sheatler released the audit Thursday showing the expo cost $122,877 and brought in about $71,000, although Commission Chairman Nick Sherman disputed some of the figures and questioned the legitimacy of the report.
The largest expense was a $30,000 payment to HGTV personality Hilary Farr, whose speaking appearance at the event also cost $1,805 for first her first-class roundtrip airfare from Los Angeles, $1,566 for a one-night stay at a Pittsburgh hotel and $499 for her chauffeured ride around the region, according to the audit. The next largest payments were $23,021 for advertising, $22,130 for event planning and marketing, $14,751 for audio rentals and $12,750 for video and television commercials, along with about $15,000 in miscellaneous expenses.
Most vendor fees were $500, although sponsorship opportunities ranged from $1,000 for smaller publicity to upwards of $10,000 for the premiere slot. The 26 vendors and sponsors brought in about $71,000 as of March 31 when the audit concluded, leaving a deficit of $51,586 for the March 12 expo.
The Observer-Reporter filed open records requests last month asking for invoices and payments of all expenses and revenue from the event, although the county has triggered a 30-day delay to respond.
“To ensure full transparency in Washington County this audit was necessary,” Sheatler said in a written statement. “I have assured the taxpayers that I will always do everything within my power to hold all county officials accountable. This is my role as the fiscal watchdog. I think the audit speaks for itself.”
The audit’s findings also criticized the opening of a new bank account for the expo with unauthorized signers overseeing withdrawals, along with improper oversight of the account and claims of inappropriate use of county and federal funds.
Sherman said the expo’s audit is rife with errors and mischaracterizations in which the commissioners were never given an opportunity to meet with Sheatler to answer any of her concerns. He suggested that the audit was released now – before all invoices have been finalized – because Sheatler is running for election to become full-time controller against three other candidates in the Republican primary on May 20. Sheatler has been serving as acting controller since October when the elected controller, April Sloane, resigned from office after pleading guilty to a felony animal cruelty charge.
“This is 100% political,” Sherman said in a phone interview. “This is someone who unfortunately is serving as a controller and doesn’t understand simple audits.”
Sherman pointed to the audio invoice included in the expenses that he said was an in-kind donation from the company, while also questioning why the audit wasn’t performed at the end of the year when the full scope of the expenses and revenue will be known. He added that no other entities, such as the treasurer’s office or the county’s contracted accounting firm it uses to assist the business office, have raised any concerns about the event or how the expenses were handled.
“Our numbers are still incomplete. It would be appropriate for her to do this a year later when all the numbers are in,” Sherman said. “At the end of the day, as long as it doesn’t cost the taxpayers money, it’s a good thing. This is nothing more than a political ploy by someone running for office saying that she’s the one who’s a watchdog.”
But Commissioner Larry Maggi, the lone Democrat on the board and who has been critical of the Real Estate Expo, praised Sheatler’s audit and questioned the use of the county’s blight mitigation from federal American Rescue Plan Act money to float portions of the event, although there have been promises to repay that account.
“The audit report states that general fund monies were used to hide expenses that were not approved. I have an issue with this because numerous contracts were executed without a public vote, and all of this was done at the taxpayers’ expense,” Maggi said. “From the beginning, I had concerns about the transparency of this event, the planning costs and the use of county resources. I don’t believe there was ever a clear purpose or function to justify this event.”
The back and forth over the audit illustrates the growing rift between the two Republican commissioners and Sheatler, who is also a member of the GOP. But it’s become increasingly clear that Sherman and Janis have lost faith in Sheatler’s ability to perform her duties in the controller’s office despite their ringing endorsements of her in October when she began her new role.
A March 14 letter from Sherman sent to Sheatler – two days after the expo – raised concerns about her job performance and the processing of payments to vendors, including to the county’s health insurance carrier that he claimed put their coverage in jeopardy. There is also a disagreement between the two sides over Sheatler’s job title and whether she is “acting controller” or still remains deputy controller, but who has the duties to run the controller’s office.
“It seems that Ms. Sheatler is grandstanding to distract from her inability to run her office,” Janis said in a written statement. “The real question here is why did the county commissioners receive a phone call that healthcare would be shut off for all employees and retirees if money wasn’t wired by the end of that day after she missed two months of payment. After further investigation on that topic we found dozens of other county vendors not being paid. (It’s) unacceptable to Washington County. Our taxpayers deserve better.”
Sheatler denied the accusation that the health care payment was late and provided receipts showing the checks were sent and processed days before Sherman’s claimed there were any issues.
“This is an attempt to discredit me, before the primary, so they can get their hand-picked controller in office who will do what they want,” Sheatler said.
Sheatler is running in the controller’s race against fellow Republicans Brenda Davis, Tony Jacob DeLost and Pat Phillips in the May 20 primary. No Democrats filed to run for controller in the primary, meaning the winner in the Republican race will likely cruise to victory in the November general election.