City audit recovers $53k from state taxes

The City of Clarendon has recouped more than $53,000 in overpayments to the State Comptroller’s office after an annual audit discovered the error.

Auditor Denise Lambert of Foster & Lambert told the Board of Aldermen at their regular meeting last Tuesday, March 13, that the city’s audit was otherwise very clean and that made the error stand out this year.

City Secretary Machiel Covey said City Hall had been double paying sales taxes collected on sanitation services since 2008 due to an error in entering figures on the comptroller’s website.

With Ms. Lambert’s help, the city asked the comptroller for a refund of the overpayments and received a refund of more than $53,600 plus $1,000 in interest.

Covey tells the Enterprise the money is going back into the city’s sanitation department for the purchase of new Dumpsters and other expenses.

During their meeting, aldermen approved the annual audit as well as the audits of the Clarendon Volunteer Fire Department and the Clarendon Economic Development Corporation.

In other city business, Clarendon’s representative on the Greenbelt Water Authority Board, Gary Campbell, gave a report to the board to update them on tests being performed on the city’s old water wells.

Alderman Will Thompson asked Campbell several questions about a plan to use the city’s groundwater to supplement water from Lake Greenbelt.

Campbell said finding an alternative source of groundwater would cost Greenbelt millions more dollars and could take three years or more. Thompson also noted that the city would be compensated for its water.

“We’re not giving anything away, but we’re up against a wall,” Thompson said. “We have the water, and Greenbelt has the know how and the ability to do this.”

Campbell said he thought that it would cost the city $10 million to develop the wells and a treatment facility on its own. But as a member of Greenbelt, the city already has a filter plant to treat water.

Alderman Terry Noble suggested the city hold a town hall meeting to discuss the water issue and answer questions the public might have about it.

Also concerning the city wells, the board voted to turn down a bid on tax delinquent property on the north side of Clarendon. City Administrator Lambert Little noted that the property in question was between two of the city’s old wells and access to it might be needed to tie the wells together.

The board voted instead to purchase the property for $978.

Aldermen also took action to:

• Cancel the election of Aldermen this May since all candidates were unopposed. A city bond election will still be held on May 12 regarding $700,000 for street improvements.

• Authorize the purchase of used pickups for the city not to exceed $3,000 each.

• Set aside $20,000 from the Hotel Occupancy Tax fund for renovations to the Mulkey Theatre.

• And approved a resolution recognizing April as Child Abuse Prevention month.