Council debates preschool administrative overcharge and directs staff to follow up with auditor

Parlier ' The Parlier City Council spent substantial time during its April meeting addressing a pulled consent-item check report after councilmember Janie raised that the city had overcharged its preschool program an administrative fee years earlier.

"We were charging the program 15% ... so that's why we're paying back $47,056," Janie said during the meeting, citing fiscal-year 2019'20 entries. Councilmembers pressed staff to explain why the auditor did not flag the discrepancy earlier and whether subsequent years (2021'23) might also contain similar overcharges.

Finance staff present at the meeting (identified as Debbie) said the department had seen system warnings when incorrect amounts were entered and that auditors review the records provided to them: "Our auditor goes by what is given to him to review," Debbie said, and noted that if paperwork or records were not presented to the auditor, the auditor could not identify the issue.

Council members repeatedly requested that staff contact Jeribou (the auditor referenced in the meeting) and the Department of Education for clarifications, including whether the earlier round-table discussion had been sufficient notice and whether additional repayments would be demanded for later fiscal years. The council also approved the consent items after the discussion.

The council did not allege fraud during the discussion, and multiple councilmembers cautioned against speculation without confirmation from the auditor. The council directed staff to report back at the next meeting with findings from the auditor and the Department of Education about timing, responsibility and any additional exposure.

A separate payment of $45,870 was later approved as regular business during the same meeting.