County Commissioners Hire Law Firm Whose Principal Has Misconduct History,
Approve Additional Money for Courthouse Project Despite Overruns, and Demand Return of $1 Million in ARPA Money from County Departments
Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) Observer Corps Reports - October 8 & 10, 2024
What You Need to Know: At their regular meeting on October 8, the Geauga County Commissioners hired a private law firm to assist with "intergovernmental issues" despite the firm's principal attorney Marc Dann being forced to resign as Ohio Attorney General due to misconduct. The Commissioners also approved $368,570 in additional funding for the Courthouse expansion project even though there were budgetary concerns; Commissioner Lennon stated that: "It seems like our budget that we set wasn’t paid attention to…. We don’t really know what it’s going to cost."
At a special meeting on October 10, the Commissioners passed a resolution stating ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) money can only pay for salary expenses usually paid for by the County's General Fund. They passed another resolution requiring several departments to return $1 Million in ARPA money that was used to fund payroll that is usually paid for outside of the County's General Fund. The resolution stated the $1 Million must be returned within 30 days.