Supervisor Kim Ward has has yet to call for the resignation of her Authority members if they improperly used public money!

Hempfield agency chairman won't resign
By Richard Gazarik
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, July 12, 2007
The chairman of the Hempfield Township Municipal Authority board said he will not resign but he will introduce a "comprehensive reform package" at the August meeting to make the authority's spending practices more accountable.Robert Regola Jr. said he has surrendered his authority-issued credit card but defended his use of it. He said all the expenses he incurred attending conferences or seminars have "always been legal and appropriate."In the future, Regola said, "I will use my personal credit card or pay cash for any authority-related business charges."Regola and other authority board members have been under scrutiny by the township board of supervisors for their spending practices at conferences and seminars. Supervisor Bob Davidson, who serves on the authority board, demanded Monday that Regola, Kathy Hopkin and Brian Melenia resign from the board."I flatly reject his demand to do so," Regola said in a statement. Melenia and Hopkin also do not plan to resign.None of the three attended the meeting Monday, forcing its cancellation."Because my attendance at conferences has helped me to be a better-informed and more effective board member, and because all of my conferences expenses have been properly incurred and reimbursed, there is no reason for Mr. Davidson to call for me to resign ... ," Regola said in the statement."Mr. Davidson's inaccurate allegations, designed to maximize media attention, demonstrate his purely political motivation and continuing desire for publicity," Regola said.Regola said his reform proposal will require board approval for all conferences, put limits on the number of conferences a member may attend each year, and impose a cap on spending."I believe these reforms are necessary to ensure board practices are transparent and not tainted by misperception," he said.He said the expenses he has submitted to the authority "have been documented and reimbursed to the authority whenever appropriate."Regola said his attorney has advised him that it is "perfectly legal" for an authority to issue credit cards to its board members. Davidson said Regola's statement is an admission of the need for reform."He's admitted to the fact to practices that are not acceptable," he said. "The horse is out of the barn, Bob. There sure is a need for reform."He added that, if there were no problems, "Why would we need reform?"Davidson said he has been examining credit card bills and has discovered hundreds of dollars in late fees because the authority did not pay bills on time. He said the late fees were incurred because authority employees are not permitted to open credit card bills until the members see them first and can black out the personal charges.He said he suspects that board members have not reimbursed the authority for personal charges, such as airfare for spouses they take on the trips.Authority board member Matt Pecarchik last Friday reimbursed the authority for the cost of an airline ticket in 2005 for taking his girlfriend to a convention in San Francisco. Kim Ward, who chairs the township board of supervisors, said Regola's action "shows that Bob Davidson's efforts have been successful to this point." She expects a report on the authority's spending will be finished by the end of July."I'm glad they're doing what they're doing, but we still will have to make some changes," Ward added.Supervisor Doug Weimer, who recommended earlier that authority members surrender their credit cards, called Regola's decision "a great step forward.""I'm happy to see that the members of the HTMA are acting on my suggestions to cease use of credit cards," Weimer said.