Pulaski Commissioners Discuss Possible Department Credit Cards

The Pulaski County Commissioners this week discussed the possibility of credit cards for department heads to allow purchases for the county to be made without the hassle of writing a check, but Auditor Sheila Garling said she is not a fan of the idea. She told the commissioners that she was approached about getting credit cards for a department but she has her concerns.

Garling said her office would need all the original invoices, receipts and other documentation for any purchases made, and the cards would need to be in the vault when not in use. On top of that, she said the person who requested the card should be the only person authorized to use it.

“I really believe that these really need to be guarded because, in all the information that I have been seeing from other auditors in other counties, these are a nightmare. I feel like that the person that’s requesting this is the person that should only be able to use them,” said Garling.

Garling said the department requested two credit cards and two fuel cards to be used, but she said government checks should be sufficient.

The auditor said if the commissioners decide to allow the issuance of credit cards, a new rule is in place requiring all purchases to be approved beforehand by a commissioner to prevent any unexpected purchases.

The commissioners elected to table the discussion until the next meeting to allow further review of any potential policy.