Fiscal Rangers

California College man modified student grades in scheme

This article below tells about a California community college student who was one of NINETY people who had computer access to change student grades. He committed several felonies and sold grade changes for transcripts to more than 50 students before being caught. The college tried to hide the problem but the local paper reported the issue and now it is all in the open. Then, after they reduced the authorized changers list to 11 people, one of them changed her own grades and was caught, so now only 7 have change authority for grades in the central computer. Allowing grade modification in the college's central computer databases that are used for official transcripts without a formal approval process is a major control weakness. In corporations, the authority for changes of critical data is split between parties, and required at least two people involved in the process, plus a separate reconcilation control to compare changes to separately prepared and authorized documentation. We wonder how well the process is controlled in the Lake County School District and the Lake Sumter Community College. vj =========================================== from Contra Costa, CA Times http://www.mercurynews.com/crime/ci_7002854?nclick_check=1 Instigator in DVC plot pleads guilty # By accepting 15 felony counts... Read more →

Missouri School District loses Bond vote due to poor justification

We never see spending recommendation justification details in the paper or on the website. Recently, the Lake County, Florida School Board forwarded a "study" by a consultant to justify the raising of impact fee taxes on new homes to help fund schools. This study was not published on the website or easily available unless you filed a public records request. So why does the District think they can get spending support from voters when information is not "transparent" for easy review by voters. And, my senior level contact at the County Board said the consultant's study had a major math error in it, and the School District staff had not "vetted" or confirmed the accuracy of the study's calculations. As for the writer below, he says voters in his Missouri area School District voted down a school bond issue because inadequate details were supplied to justify the bonds. We all know math is not the strong suit of many teachers and students, but it may be a problem for the administrators as well, both in Missouri and in Florida. They need to not only have accurate, understandable quantified justification, but it needs to be "trasnparent" and published on the website... Read more →

The Islamist Fifth Column in America - bigger than we thought

I decided to add occasional articles about the "War on Terrorism". This article is scary. vj from http://www.investors.com/editorial/editorialcontent.asp?secid=1501&status=article&id=275267277682917&view=1 The Islamist Fifth Column In America INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Posted 9/21/2007 Homeland Security: We've warned for years that an Islamist underground exists in this country, secretly working to take over the U.S. Now the mainstream media is waking up to the threat. Yes, theirs is an ambitious plan. But the enemy lurking within is assiduous, patient and well-organized. We are only now starting to see its tentacles, thanks to a landmark federal terror-financing case under way in Dallas. News about the secret Islamist plot against the U.S. is starting to trickle out from the few media covering the trial against the Holy Land Foundation, the largest Muslim charity in America. It hasn't made the politically correct evening news yet. But the Associated Press has dared to quote from the chilling courtroom exhibits, and now the Dallas Morning News has weighed in with a lengthy feature story. "Amid the mountain of evidence released in the trial, the most provocative has turned out to be a handful of previously classified evidence detailing Islamist extremists' ambitious plans for a U.S. takeover," the newspaper said. "Terrorism... Read more →

Florida Sheriff Resigns in $80,000 Corruption Probe

The two articles below describe the resignation of the Broward County Sheriff due to corruption. He took bribes or kickbacks of about $80,000 from vendors. It seems to be a trend in government corruption that much of the problem comes from weak purchasing controls. If they had a waste, fraud & abuse hotline, one of the vendors might have reported him. There was no details whether any internal audit agency had oversight of the Sheriff's department. vj from http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gVyBagYR9KasIAU2YkX1TAr2Q_Aw Fla. Sheriff Resigns in Corruption Probe By CURT ANDERSON – 16 hours ago FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Broward County Sheriff Ken Jenne resigned Tuesday after agreeing to plead guilty to federal tax evasion and mail fraud charges after a corruption investigation uncovered crimes in his outside business dealings, federal prosecutors said. The plea deal came as Jenne faced a possible grand jury indictment on more serious money-laundering charges, and it likely will mean at least a year in prison for the longtime force in state Democratic politics. Under the agreement signed Friday, Jenne will plead guilty to three counts of tax evasion and one count of mail fraud conspiracy, U.S. Attorney R. Alexander Acosta said. "Ken Jenne has been a... Read more →

Feds: Harvey Park District (Chicago area) officials misused $144,000 in government funds

This article below is about three officials, including the President and two Directors, in a Chicago area Park District (i.e. like Parks & Recreation) that siphoned off $144,000 in district funds using district credit cards plus instructing a vendor to provide kickbacks. There were no details about why they were able to do so, or the quality of the District accounting controls or audit functions. vj Date posted online: Friday, August 31, 2007 from: http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2007/08/31/news/top_news/docba312002de2d415a862573480001e6db.prt Feds: Harvey Park District (Chicago area) officials misused money 3 park leaders accused of using taxpayer money for personal expenses BY CHRIS KELLER and LAURI HARVEY KEAGLE The Times CHICAGO | Three Harvey Park District officials Thursday pleaded not guilty in federal court, hours after the FBI arrested them at their south suburban homes on charges of using $144,000 of taxpayer money to pay for personal expenses. Park District President Julius Patterson, 51, of Harvey; Park District Director Kendall Parrott, 48, of Markham; and Park District Assistant Director Linda Hudson, 47, of Harvey, entered the pleas before U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle at the Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago. (Read the indictment.) Each are charged with three counts of wire fraud and one count of... Read more →