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Comptroller’s office joins Texas Rangers in financial investigation
Both residents and council members looking for clarity on the city’s financial troubles and pending state investigation left last week’s crowded work session with few new details.
The Nov. 5 discussion revisited familiar ground, reviewing Elgin’s internal control gaps, staffing shortages and need to update fiscal policies. City staff reiterated that third-party auditors found no evidence of fraud but faced questions about potential state law violations related to city accounts — concerns that prompted Gov. Greg Abbott to direct the Texas Rangers to investigate one week prior.
“Just because we stopped doing it doesn’t mean it wasn’t done — it doesn’t matter if we stopped doing the illegal thing, it was still done illegally,” Councilwoman Tiffany St. Pierre said. “We should have gotten ahead of this. Now we look stupid because we didn’t.”
The meeting came days before the Texas Rangers are scheduled to meet with city officials as part of a state probe into alleged misappropriation of public funds.
In a letter to Lt. Col. Jason Taylor of the Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock confirmed his office will assist with the investigation, potentially providing subject matter experts in auditing public accounts.
“Texans expect honesty and accountability from every level of government,” Hancock said in a statement. “Our office will fully support the Texas Rangers and use every tool at our disposal to ensure taxpayer dollars are protected and the facts are brought to light.”
Elgin leaders said the city plans to cooperate with the state’s investigation.
Despite the scrutiny, Interim City Manager Robert Eads said progress is being made and corrective actions are already underway.
“We know we’ve got issues,” Eads said. “What I can tell you today, at least in my charge, is manage the city — manage it well — and get us moving forward.”
Eads attributed many of the city’s bookkeeping issues to vacancies and turnover. The city has been without a permanent finance director for more than a year and continues to search for a qualified replacement, a task Eads said is becoming “increasingly challenging.”
“The biggest weakness is not having that person — those people in that office for any substantial period,” he said. “We need to stop the bleeding. We need to hire up. That’s the only way that we can move forward, is to be able to do that.”
