January 31, 2007 Brattleboro Reformer
January 25, 2007 Salmon eyes uniform accounting system for sheriffs
| By PATRICK J. CROWLEY, Reformer Staff
Brattleboro Reformer
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| Thursday, January 25
BRATTLEBORO -- State Auditor Thomas M. Salmon has worked a total of 14 days in his new job.
But within that time, he's been able to formulate the beginnings of a new plan to modernize the way that Vemont sheriff's departments handle their finances.
"There's 14 sheriff's departments using 12 different software programs," said Salmon.
But Salmon said the process is still in the initial planning stages and is progressing slowly. Once Salmon is able to sit down with all the sheriffs, a plan will be unveiled to the public in a joint news conference, he said.
"Sheriffs and auditors need to have a good relationship," said Salmon. "In doing so, that leads to municipal clarity beyond just the sheriffs."
In short, his plan would be to work with all the sheriff's departments to establish a uniform system of accounting.
"The process is to not do it to them, but do it with them," he said.
Salmon said specifics have yet to be developed, but said the first priority is to set up communications with all the sheriffs. He has been able to talk to about half of the sheriffs in the state.
From there, he said, a small municipal advisory task force would be developed to serve as something of a consulting firm to the sheriff's department in each county.
The need for such consulting, he said, rises from the fact that the sheriff's departments mostly operate in a typically small, rural setting and that the way things are done in one department is different from another.
"I just think that the sheriff's community is a very unique community. It's part government and part entrepreneurial," said Salmon. "There's a lot of demands on them."
Sheriffs, for now, must continue dealing with money the way they already do until they hear from Salmon, said Windsor County Sheriff Michael Chamberlain.
"We're all eager to work with Tom," Chamberlain said. "Until that time we just have to wait."
"By working together they can come to a good conclusion for what's going to be done," said acting Windham County Sheriff Richard Guthrie, who turns the job over to Keith Clark on Feb. 1.
But Salmon said the plan is just on his radar screen, as he finishes up the state's annual financial report.
"I walked into a very, very busy place," he said.
But the plan to modernize finances for sheriff's departments is just one of his first steps toward financial clarity in the state.
"I still feel that the auditor's office can be a catalyst for a lot of financial good," he said.
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