De Facto, this phrase is used to characterize an officer, a government, a past action, or a state of affairs which must be accepted for all practical purposes, but is illegal or illegitimate.
The 2024 city budget, adopted in June of 2023, has the following message from the city administrator, Stu McRae, “… This years revenues are different from previous years, making the budget appear abnormally larger than before. We didn’t suddenly get a windfall of money. This is a change from past years practices where the budget did not account for rollover money … grants which haven’t been awarded, unallocated capital facilities tax … it allows for a $5M placeholder for grants that may become available.”
The writer of this letter, feels a “$5M placeholder”, is as realistic as a placeholder, at a anarchist meeting.
In further addressing the 2023 budget, it allows that administration may, “… amend an appropriation within a department with out the approval of the governing body”. This is to allow for the administration to transfer unencumbered or unexpended funds, “from one fund, dept, or account to another.” Further, “the intent of the action is to reduce the need for multiple revisions …” The audit of the city for 2023 states, “the general, water and solid waste funds trial balances provided for fiscal year, ended June 30, 2023 audit were out of balance by $2,751,968, $28,747 and $27,253 respectively” . This is the “missing” $2.8 million, the auditor, PMCH further states, “the City of Sheridan management, in the course of their assigned duties, lack the specific skills and experience necessary to fully prepare external financial statements and related footnotes in accordance with … GAAP” status, “this finding has been repeated”.
The mayor and council have accepted that Mr. McRae, can move money from one dept to another, without a budget revision address. This has a whiff of Enron. A scandal, which bankrupted Enron, and ended in the dissolution of Arthur Andersen, one of the largest auditing and accounting companies in the world. In February of 2023, Mr. McRae asked the City of Sheridan’s Treasurer to resign. He replaced her with a new treasurer and budget dept. The city’s audit has stated, the new kids will hopefully be up to the job by “June 20, 2027”.
Mr. McRae has, De Facto, made himself the budget king for the city, moving funds, from one dept to another. He has replaced the competent with the incompetent. Why?
Whom is being served by this deception? The voter, may as well, not bother to elect Mayor or Council, except to point the finger of blame. Hi Ho, Hi Ho, its off to work we go! Will Snow White find her prince, what do the dwarfs think?
"Last year we tried a concept to keep from having to do budget revisions throughout the year. This consisted of accounting for potential and expected grants and loans in the budget, resulting in our budget looking larger than it was. The consequence of this process was greater confusion within affected departments when tracking actual contingency funds versus planned grants and loans that did not materialize. Therefore, we will go back to our previous process, which will entail periodic budget revisions being brought to the governing body, but will include modest contingencies as was done in FY24. We celebrate out-of-the-box thinking, and this was in that category. It did not negatively affect our budget, so there was no harm in trying it." pg 8 of 2025 budget.
"Upon approval of the Governing Body, after publication of notice, any unencumbered or unexpended appropriation balance or part thereof may be transferred from one fund, department, or account to another."
"No officer or employee of the City shall make any expenditure or encumbrance in excess of the total appropriation for any department. Management may amend an appropriation within the department without the approval of the Governing Body." pg 17 of 2025 budget
To join in on the dialog, contact sheridanclash@gmail.com.