Muncie board approves $217,820.93 in claims as controller defends credit‑card oversight

The Muncie Board of Public Works and Safety approved a register of claims totaling $217,820.93 during its July 22 meeting and addressed a public complaint about city credit card charges.

A committee member moved to approve the claims; the motion was seconded and the board carried it by voice vote. City controller Craig Wright summarized the week’s claims as a relatively short list focusing on health care and utilities and noted a payment to Flatland Resources for work at Prairie Creek Reservoir.

Ricky Yenser, a newsman and author, raised concerns about a pair of large credit‑card charges and urged the city to take a closer look, citing a $7,203.71 charge and a $6,551.63 charge on recent statements. “It came to my attention and some others … you might wanna take a closer look at some of these credit card charges,” Yenser said.

Craig Wright responded that the controller’s office reviews credit‑card activity closely, assigns a staff member to reconcile receipts, confirms tax‑exempt status where applicable, and seeks missing receipts from vendors. “Any receipts that we do not have, we’ve been very good on getting copies of them to the companies where the credit cards are spent,” Wright said.

Board members asked follow‑up questions about a payment to Flatland Resources related to trail work at Prairie Creek; Wright said he would check the invoice details and provide documentation. The board did not record individual roll‑call tallies in the minutes; the motion passed on a voice vote.

The board also approved the minutes from the July 15 meeting earlier in the session.

What’s next: The board did not set a specific follow‑up date for a deeper review of the credit‑card charges; the controller indicated he would pull invoices and provide additional details on the Flatland Resources billing.