By: Libi Uremovic | Original Article at Patch.com
The Wastewater Improvement Fund Accounts lists $4.9 Million Funneled to Urban Logic Consultants and $2.7 Million Back to the City
Bond Fund Accounts are individual accounts established and maintained by the Bond Trustee, Union Bank. The Use and Amount of money deposited into each Fund Account is established by each Bonds’ Sources and Uses of Funds Disclosure page. On the Beaumont 2001 Sewer Bond page 19 list the Bond Fund Accounts as:
Wastewater Escrow Fund $7,987,365
Wastewater Improvement Fund $1,518,760
Costs of Issuance Fund $ 475,000
Rate Stabilization Fund $ 300,000
Total Uses $10,281,125
The Beaumont GAAP Audits report the following amounts paid for Sewer Fund Machinery & Equipment:
FYE 2010 $4.4 Million
FYE 2011 $2.4 Million
FYE 2012 $2.6 Million
FYE 2013 $2.3 Million
The definition of Machinery and Equipment is: ‘Assets having a physical existence and expected to be used for a period exceeding one year.’ Consulting, labor, and advertising expenses do not qualify as machinery and equipment.
Because the Check Warrants do not show millions in equipment purchases, a public records request was filed for the checks to show the Sewer Fund machinery and equipment purchased in the last four years. The City produced a copy of the Sewer Fund from the General Ledger listing the money paid with Checks AND the 2001 Sewer Bond Wastewater Improvement Fund Accounts for the fiscal years ending in 2010, 2011, and 2012.
The July 1, 2009 Wastewater Improvement Fund Account shows a Beginning Balance of $6,656,617.29. Page 19 of the Bond states the total amount the Trustee should have deposit into this Fund Account was only 1.5 Million.
From July 2009 thru June 2010 a total of $1784,199.99 was funneled to Urban Logic Consultants, $15,794.90 to Bentley Systems, and $871,810.73 to Citibank
From July 2010 thru June 2011 a total of $1,116,859.95 was funneled to Urban Logic Consultants.
From July 2011 to March 2012 a total of $999,021.56 was funneled to Urban Logic Consultants and $1,835,084 to Citibank. The final Balance on March 31, 2012 was $13.59.
The General Ledger from July 2009 through June 2012 lists a total of $7,767,855.05 in Expenses with $2.8 Million paid to Urban Logic, $2.3 Million to J.F. Shea, $92,676 to Moody Construction, and $780,000 to Wildermuth Environmentals.
Nearly $8 Million of the $9.7 Million 2001 Wastewater Bond was supposed to be used to pay old bond debt, but $3.9 Million was funneled to Urban Logic and $2.7 Million was funneled back to the City through Citibank.
The 1993 Sewer Bond still has an $8.3 Million Sinking Fund Security outstanding and due in 2023 and the 1996 Sewer Bond has a $7 Million Sinking Fund Security due in 2025.
And the Wastewater Treatment Plant?
There is no Wastewater Treatment Plant in Beaumont. All the money was embezzled.