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Home > Blogs > Butler County News and Issues > Archives > 2009 > October > 22 > Entry
State: Furmon’s former son-in-law improperly paid
The state auditor has ordered Butler County to reimburse its water department $81,382 for payments to a county commissioner’s former son-in-law the state says were improperly handled.
James Hamblin resigned as Butler County Emergency Management Agency contingency planner last year after the local Democratic Party was granted an Ohio Ethics Commission investigation into pay raises Hamblin received.
Hamblin was married for Commissioner Charles Furmon’s daughter for nearly three years while Furmon was on the commission. During those years, Furmon abstained from all but one pay raise for Hamblin.
Those raises nearly doubled Hamblin’s salary. Furmon has repeatedly denied having any impact on any raises Hamblin received.
In a notice of proposed findings dated Oct. 14, an auditor from the state auditor’s office wrote that Hamblin was paid out of the county’s water department, when he should have been paid by the EMA.
This is an improper use of county money, the state wrote.
Here is a copy of the state’s findings:
(Click on the top right corner to enlarge)
To address this, commissioners transferred $81,382 from the general fund to the EMA, so that agency can reimburse the water department.
Commission President Donald Dixon said the county has ceased the practice of paying people out of the water department who don’t work there.
“My concern is we were paying people out of it who didn’t have anything to do with water and sewer,” Dixon said.
Currently, only four people are partially paid out of the water department: the county administrator, commissioners’ attorney, finance director and assistant finance director.
County officials say the state’s findings came during a routine audit.
Permalink | Comments (21) | Post your comment | Categories: County Commission, Environmental Services
Comments
By Crimewatcher
October 22, 2009 1:14 PM | Link to this
Furman is a man you can trust in what he says as being the truth, YEA RIGHT!! Your arrogance I hope is you down fall.
By Chris
October 22, 2009 2:16 PM | Link to this
Why is the county paying this out of the general fund to EMA. If he was an EMA employee why doesn’t EMA have to pay for it as EMA operates as a board and has a budget independent of the commissioners?
By George Manda
October 22, 2009 2:23 PM | Link to this
Who else has been paid out of the Water Department funds? It’s implied in Commissioner Dixon’s comment that others were.
By Frosty
October 22, 2009 3:16 PM | Link to this
I’m confused here, how many years did Hamblin work at EMA and how was he paid for those years. If he was paid out of the Water and Sewer Funds for those years why are they only repaying for one year?
By chuck you
October 22, 2009 3:23 PM | Link to this
Here is another example of just initials of county administrator Tim Williams found on official paperwork. Why didn’t Williams suggest Furman pay the Water Dept out of his campaign fund? Otherwise Furman is no different than Dillingham except maybe 60 years older.
By Bob Freeber
October 22, 2009 4:09 PM | Link to this
The truly scary question here is, “How do we know that other expenses aren’t being paid out of budgets they don’t belong to?” Also, I’ve served on enough committees and even church boards to know that just because a person abstains from an official vote, doesn’t mean that he isn’t working on the issue behind the scenes. It’s time that elected officals in this county learned the meaning of accountability and consequence!
By Sammy
October 22, 2009 4:17 PM | Link to this
I agree with Bob’s comment “because a person abstains from an official vote, doesn’t mean that he isn’t working on the issue behind the scenes”. That statement would certain apply to Dixon and his relationship with the director of the Board of Elections. His abstaining from votes related to the Board of elections is a joke.
By greatly concerned
October 22, 2009 4:29 PM | Link to this
All Butler County Administrators and Politicians should be required to sign a statement when hired or taking office that confirms that they understand the meaning of “conflict of interest”. That way, this can be used against them in court when they are caught. Furmon is one of several guilty of this ethics violation.
By stillalive
October 22, 2009 4:56 PM | Link to this
Chuck, Peg and Tim…I have a question…..Do you watch HOGAN HEROS reruns on a regular basis? You have Schultz’s line down…..”I KNOW NOTHING”…..righttttttttt! We need to correct this back to when this error started, and Chuck and Tim, let’s payroll deduct it out of your pay checks! I believe you were told many years ago about this misfunding…7X5 ft glossy of Chuck and Tim, cuffed and stuffed!
By Alan Gregory
October 22, 2009 5:03 PM | Link to this
Sammy, you’ve got to be kidding me! If it weren’t for Don Dixon, we would never have known any of this. He is the only one of the three pushing for accountability at all, it seems and I think it’s rather ignorant for you to try to drag him through Furman’s mess. After all, Chuck is the one under investigation, not Dixon. Next time qualify your facts before you write in instead of twisting the words of others into cheap shots at the good guys.
By discussted
October 22, 2009 8:05 PM | Link to this
Chuck Furman has spent the last few years pointing fingers at everyone else. He should truely be ashamed, but I’m sure his wife won’t let him! He wore a badge and took an oath to up-hold the law for many years. Frankly, I think he should give it back because he has tarnished it!
By all knowing
October 22, 2009 8:35 PM | Link to this
This is the man we have running a $100 million dollar county. What a joke! Why does the general fund have to suffer? Let’s pay it back out of Furman’s salary. Is this ever going to stop? Crooks, Crooks, Crooks!
By Chris Kash
October 22, 2009 9:53 PM | Link to this
I totally agree with Alan Gregory’s comments. Sounds like “Sammy” has a personal ax to grind. Whatsa matter Sammy did Dixon rattle your cage too?
By Jim Davidson
October 22, 2009 10:03 PM | Link to this
I shudder to think what all has been covered up by Furmon, Jolivette and yes even Tim Williams before Don Dixon got on the Commission. I hear employees are afraid of them because they are so vindictive. Bet they try and come after Dixon next. Put your armour on Don and keep turning those rocks over.
By I GOT IT
October 22, 2009 10:09 PM | Link to this
I GOT IT! Let’s hope Jolivette gets kicked out of office for his ethics violation and we will put Rick Jones in as County Commissioner…OUR DREAM TEAM-DON DIXON & RICK JONES!!!! Talk about cleaning out that rats nest, wow.
By Fed Up
October 22, 2009 10:52 PM | Link to this
When the FBI gets finished investigating Furmon, wonder how he is going to look in the prison head shaved hair do?
By greatly concerned
October 23, 2009 7:50 AM | Link to this
The reason our Butler County politics and administration is so corrupt is because there is no downside. They get caught and yet, no one is punished. Where are the penalties for Ethics violators? What a joke! That tells me that the corruption goes higher than the County level. Who is protecting these con artists and morally bankrupt politicians?
By Cindy
October 23, 2009 10:04 AM | Link to this
Hey, you Don Dixon lovers, where was his voice when this payoff was approved. Why didn’t he object to this coming out of the county general fund?
By Dan
October 24, 2009 11:10 AM | Link to this
Hey Cindy - There are a lot of us “Don Dixon Lovers” out here. Why? because he is the only Commissioner standing for what is right!
By Lester
October 25, 2009 2:12 PM | Link to this
Why didn’t the auditor catch this until the last year Hamblin worked? What about the other years Hamblin was paid by the water and sewer customers when he wasn’t even working for the department. I think the commissioners owe the water customers for several more years salary.
By WAKE UP
October 27, 2009 12:48 PM | Link to this
NOTHING WILL HAPPEN WITH CHUCK HE KNOWS IT, SO STOP PLEASE. STAY HOME TAKE CARE OF THE KIDS AND TEACH THEM HOW TO BECOME PART OF THE HOME TOWN TEAM, AND THEY WILL HAVE A JOB, ASK JIMMY. MARRY A HOME TOWN TEAM BABY GIRL AND YOU WILL MAKE ALL THE MONEY U NEED AND GET A JOB.