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AACOG gets good audit report; finalizes search for leader

Board eager to move past scandal

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SAN ANTONIO – The search for a new executive director is on and the healing process is in high gear at the Alamo Area Council of Governments, which also got a good review from an audit.

AACOG earlier this year was rocked by a scandal that cost its two top officials their jobs.

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VIctor Perello,an auditor from Weaver & Tidwell, gave the AACOG Board its first bit of good news.

"Essentially when we perform our procedures we do a risk-based audit," Perello told the board.

He said an audit of AACOG's finances showed no major problems.

But there was one item linked to former AACOG bosses Dean Danos and Michael Quinn. Both lost their jobs after linking with Jackie Cooper and the TriHM Foundation, which promised to lease space in AACOG and bring in millions of dollars in grants but never did.

"We do believe that it's something that everyone should be aware of," Perello said.

The audit glitch was a $36,000 bill for engineering services that AACOG had to pay for because the TriHM grants never came in.

"The so-called TriHM funds that we're all very well aware of, were supposed to come in and pay those invoices," Perello said.

AACOG Board chairman Kevin Wolff said he is glad the audit did not turn up anything worse.

"It's good news," Wolff said. "I'm very thankful that during the audit process we didn't uncover nefarious things or things that were way out of line."

Wolff said the procedures that allowed that charge to be passed on to AACOG have also been changed.

"(Danos and Quinn) planned to pay for it with grant funds from TriHM, and as we all know, that was not real," Wolff said. "Even before the audit was finished we already had put in new procedures and policies to insure that something like that can't happen again."

Another big item on Wednesday's agenda: the search for a new executive director of AACOG. The position is now officially open and the search will continue through Aug. 15.

READ: AACOG's job posting for executive director

Interim co-executive director Tim Trevino reported to the board that decisions were left to be made by the board.

"The search committee would identify the applicants," Trevino said. "Second, identify a chairperson for that search committee.

The board went on to clarify the job description and establish the search committee as the members of the board's executive committee and any other board volunteers. They also set a timeline for recruitment and hiring.

Board members like Bandera County Judge Richard Evans are eager to move on.

"We need closure and we need to move on, do our job and take care of the people we represent," Evans said.

Wolff is also eager to fill the job of executive director since he is basically now taking on those tasks in an unpaid roll.

"Take this as a recruitment message from me. We've got a good organization here, it needs a new, good executive director," Wolff said. "I want to make sure that this organization has a good, solid foundation so that whoever the next executive director is, that they are able to start by looking ahead and not having to look behind to fix things."

He said four or five good candidates have already inquired.


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