WEST PARIS – Voters approved $17,000 Thursday to cover an anticipated increase in administrative costs and to cover the cost of a special audit.

The audit is being conducted to address discrepancies found in the bookkeeping for 2002 and is estimated to cost from $5,000 to $10,000.

According to town attorney Geoff Hole, the estimate of $10,000 makes certain that enough money will be available for the audit. If the figure comes in less than $10,000, he told voters at the special town meeting, the extra money will be rolled back into the overlay account.

“Historically, $5,000 is appropriated each year for audit and town report costs,” Hole said, “but where there is a need for extra work for the audit this year, we are asking for what we know will be enough.

“We did not want to come back to you later for more money.”

Hole also said that the discrepancies found in the 2002 books resulted from bank statements not being done in a timely manner. Other concerns:

• IRS 941 forms, some of which were not signed and not complete;

• motor vehicle registration problems; and

• unlocked doors and accessible files at the Town Office, where some files are missing.

To get to the root of the problem, Hole said:

• Auditors Smith & Associates are working to help reconstruct the year 2002 and training staff members for 2003.

• Maine Department of Motor Vehicles representatives have agreed to come to West Paris and do an audit in that area; and

• The State Police have been consulted and are in the process of investigating the matter.

“I can’t tell you more than that right now,” he said.

Hole added that as soon as the audits and ongoing investigations are complete, there could be a public hearing held to inform people of the findings.

As to appropriating $7,000 from overlay to cover an anticipated increase in administrative costs, the major concern proved to be a $2.25-an-hour raise given to recently elected Town Clerk Cheryl Shattenberg.

People said the issue of such a raise should have been included on the March town meeting warrant. Also, many were concerned that money to cover the raise was not included in the original budget proposal for 2003.

Asked to give a detailed accounting of the anticipated increase, Shattenberg said, “Yes, part of it is my raise, but it also includes a lot of overtime for the office staff during the special audit. It’s hard to break it down because we don’t know how many specific hours each person will have in overtime.”

Resident and former Selectman Terry Campbell said, “In all my years of working, I never got a 20 percent raise. If someone got that, they’re a better person than I am.”

Others agreed with Campbell, but a second group supported the raise, saying that current circumstances justified Shattenberg getting more money than the $11.25 an hour that town clerks had been paid in the past.

Their feeling was that her work on the audit was saving money because the auditors would be charging $60 per hour as compared to Shattenberg’s $13.50 per hour, and she and the other staff members have to spend more hours than usual until the current accounting problems are resolved.

In the end, approval of the $7,000 appropriation was given by an overwhelming majority.

Finally, the voters approved accepting a $1,000 grant from Wal-Mart that will be used by the fire department for training.

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