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Council Rehires Controversial Firm, Again In what local activists are calling "patronage at its most blatant", the Hillside Council voted to rehire the services of auditors Suplee Clooney.
Last year, both the Council and the school board hired the firm, igniting a polemic as good-government activists questioned the firm's history in the town. When the township's two governing bodies hired the firm last year, citizen Sergio Bichao brought to light on his website financial reviews done by an outside auditor and the state of New Jersey of the five-year period Suplee Clooney audited the school board. Among the blatant irregularities uncovered were thousands of dollars in overpayments and thousands of dollars paid to vendors without supporting documents. Violations by the school board during this period included awarding contracts without going to bid; failing to obtain signed contracts for vendors; failing to present timely financial reports; and not maintaining proper records or bookkeeping. Despite all this, the Council rehired the firm last year, and again this year. The firm is a favorite of governing bodies under the auspices of the Union County Democratic Party organization and has done work for the county Improvement Authority, whose Executive Director is party boss Charlotte DeFilippo. The Board of Education, which is no longer controlled by the county political machine, is expected to dump the firm from its payroll this year. |
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