{"id":5700,"date":"2022-07-19T20:19:40","date_gmt":"2022-07-20T00:19:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/citizensforgoodgovernment.org\/online\/?p=5700"},"modified":"2022-07-19T20:19:40","modified_gmt":"2022-07-20T00:19:40","slug":"commissioners-cover-up-trouble-in-paradise-hide-organizational-problems-deep-in-budget-records-dss-asks-for-12-new-positions-commissioners-give-them-zero-everybody-that-asked-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citizensforgoodgovernment.org\/online\/2022\/07\/19\/commissioners-cover-up-trouble-in-paradise-hide-organizational-problems-deep-in-budget-records-dss-asks-for-12-new-positions-commissioners-give-them-zero-everybody-that-asked-for\/","title":{"rendered":"Commissioners Cover-up Trouble in Paradise!!! Hide Organizational Problems Deep in Budget records!!! DSS asks for 12 new positions\u2014Commissioners give them ZERO!! Everybody That Asked for new positions got them. All or mostly all. WHY Did DSS get shafted???? Discovery, Report, Commentary and Conclusions by Robert A"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"image_pdf\"<\/a>\"image_print\"<\/a><\/div>

The Cleveland County Commissioners FY2023 Budget Presentation was 93 pages long and was presented to the Commissioners by the County Manager Brian Epley during the Budget Hearing in about 25 minutes. Much or the County Manager\u2019s Budget Message PowerPoint Presentation to the Commissioners was skipped over totally and all that WAS presented, was presented too fast for ANY member of the public to comprehend. Robert A would bet good money that very few, if any, of the Commissioners understood (or were aware) of all of what this presentation included. As for Robert A, he downloaded this 93-page FY2023 Budget Presentation document and studied oner it in quite some detail. Especially Page 39.<\/p>\n

Page 39 of this 93-page FY2023 Budget Presentation document was a listing of all the County Departments that had requested additional personnel, how many additional personnel were requested, how many were approved and the annual cost. That Page 39 is shown below for your convenience.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Robert A says, notice that very first item on this Budget document. <\/p>\n

The Cleveland County Department of Social Services, now under the total control of the Cleveland County Commissioners through an advisory board and the County Manager requested 12 additional personnel and the Commissioners approved ZERO. All the other Departments received what they requested, except for the Sheriff\u2019s Department who requested 6 and 4 were approved. Public Health requested 2 and 2 were approved on a temporary basis.<\/p>\n

And DSS was 0 for 12.<\/p>\n

And DSS works directly for the Commissioners??? Weren\u2019t these people talking to one another or what?<\/p>\n

Robert A believes it is both! The we\u2019re NOT talking to one another, except to spend $3.5 Million to move DSS from their old offices (for reasons that are totally dubious and hidden) to the Health Department Building and the \u201cOr What.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before we examine the \u201cOr What,\u201d let\u2019s look at this $3.5 Million DSS move out of their old offices.<\/p>\n

The old DSS Building, according to Assistant County Manager Kerri Melton, \u201cis past it\u2019s useful life.\u201d Ms. Melton has never described what \u201cpast it\u2019s useful life\u201d means exactly. Since the average age of 27 of the 29 Cleveland County Public Schools is over 57 years old. One could easily conclude that every one of these 27 school buildings are \u201dpast their useful life.\u201d Yet, Luke Queen-CCS Chairman is spending $35 Million to refurbish the four high schools; Burns, Crest, Shelby and Crest. Over half a million dollars is presently being spent on \u201cglazing\u201d the windows at Burns and Crest. Surely a clear sign that the CCS Maintenance Department has NOT been properly led and supervised for many, many years. Same with the HVAC systems at all four high schools that have incredibly all failed and need replacement at the exact same time. Clearly the Commissioners AND the CCS School Board and Staff don\u2019t have a clue what they are doing as relates to facilities operation and maintenance. But that is a true story for another time. <\/p>\n

As we speak, the Commissioners are spending at least $3.5 Million, $2.5 remodeling and $1 Million for new furniture and fixtures for the DSS to move into the Health Department building. Robert A estimates that $3.5 million will stretch into at least $5 Million before the DSS fully transitions into the Health Department Building. Mostly because those specifying the scope of work and construction don\u2019t know how to specify scopes of work and construction processes to begin with. As work goes on, they will encounter issues and have to issue costly change orders to cover all the loose ends they didn\u2019t know about at the start. Which is consistent and normal for how CCS, the Commissioners and CCC operates under the Robert \u201cLuke\u201d Queens, Kevin Gordons and the CCC BoTs.<\/p>\n

And, don\u2019t forget about the bombshell Channel 3 TV news a few months back that exposed the fact that the Cleveland County Department had literally been stealing babies from their parents by using phony and totally illegal so-called \u201cContracts\u201d that the CCDSS had forced upon parents with the threat that they would take their children anyway if the parents refused to sign those illegal contracts. Many people in Cleveland County saw those WBTV-3 primetime news stories and say DSS Director Katie Swanson slam her door in the TV Reporter\u2019s face. It was a bad day for Cleveland County as WBTV 3 News Primetime reaches over a million viewers. Who the heck would ever want to move to Cleveland County? Or stay here for that matter?<\/p>\n

And, what was the discipline the Commissioners meted out to the DSS offenders? Exactly the same as regards the \u201cQueer\u201d and CRT Children\u2019s books at the Shelby Library. NOTHING!!! Cleveland County and the Cleveland County Elected leadership are the laughing stock of North Carolina. South Carolina too. Robert \u201cLuke\u201d Queen, Kevin Gordon and the Rogue Republicans being prime examples. As for DSS, DSS Director Katie Swanson put out a video, hidden deep on the Cleveland County Official Website, that, regarding the children stolen by the false \u201cContracts,\u201d the DSS had ensured that the children were SAFE. <\/p>\n

Regarding DSS ensuring the safety of children, a picture is worth a thousand words.<\/p>\n

Note: FYI, please find below a few before and after pictures on how the Cleveland County Department of Social Services ensures the safety of Children. This DSS \u201cProtected\u201d child, thanks to the CCDSS, will now be \u201cSAFE\u201d and \u201cProtected\u201d for eternity.<\/p>\n