(PENSACOLA) --- The Escambia Children’s Trust faced scrutiny at the June 9 meeting.
The hour-and-forty-minute-long meeting began with a financial report, informing the Escambia County Board of Commissioners (BCC) of the trust’s remaining fund balance of $21,299,000 and a year-to-date increase of $2,822,000, according to Treasurer Tammy Abrams.
“Our cash balance remains strong,” Abrams said. “We have 22,497,525 in the operating account and almost 2.5 million held in reserves.”
Abrams said the trust tends to collect property tax earlier in the year, rather than later.
“So that is falling along lines,” Abrams said.
(Photo: YouTube)
Though the BCC approved the finances, former New World Believers Executive Director Rodney Jones did not, demanding a $75K reimbursement.
“But I will not let anyone bully me and push me around, nor my organization,” Jones said.
But it is not his organization since he was released as the director in January for an alleged sexual battery of an underage client enrolled in the “H.O.O.P.S” program.
“I did receive information, um, not directly from ECT, but from their attorneys regarding our reimbursements,” Joned said of the $75K amount. “I didn't agree with it because of the documentation that I currently have that refutes some of the deductions that they have.”
Holding up a file of papers, Jones said it “seems to be some type of witch hunt” regarding the groups' reimbursement.
(Photo: YouTube)
Jones was shut down by the public comment timer and ECT officials, but the conversation continued, with Commissioner Lumon May requesting confirmation that negotiations were, in fact, underway.
“I don't know what the legal bill has become on their side and our side,” May said. “I certainly don't think we ought to be spending more than the settlement.”
Jones was told he needed to step away from the podium due to attorney-client confidentiality, leading to an even more contentious discussion about the Bright Pathways Out-of-School grant totaling $3.5 million. Funds from the grant are awarded based on a point system.
ECT Director Lindsey Cannon began noting she “understands that there was a desire for us to go back and do some work,” but added she does not believe “it would change the scoring in any way from the public.”
It’s that scoring that concerns Commissioner May.
“If we're taking all the politics out of it and just trying to help children, we should try to help as many organizations as we can and be good stewards of the money, monitor the money,” May said.
The more he discussed the system, the more upset he got.
(Photo: YouTube)
“We are funding the same organizations over and over again,” May said. “We're funding organizations that had capacity, after-school programs, outreach programs, long before the trust.”
May said the county no longer needs after-school programs; it needs to fund the less fortunate.
“All those organizations that we're funding initially started and gave great pitches that all we need is a stimulus to get started, and they continue to come,” May said. “The poor people who can't do fundraising can't get any help from the trust.”
Vice Chair Stephanie Waters countered May, saying the trust does assist the “mom and pop” through the CAREs (Community, Action, Resilience, & Empowerment) grant.
Cannon said the trust wants to sit back down with organizations and help them apply for grants.
“We have done that all along with anyone who has requested it,” Lindsey said.
But time is of the essence, according to the ECT executive director.
“We need to award these things,” Cannon said. “We've got to get people ready and going for the school year and let parents know what's available to them.”
0
1
Comments