The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1929-02-22
Thousands Paid Road Help
by Williams, ignoring
Voucher FormaIity.
DEPOSITS IN HIS NAME
Records Show as Much as
$4,000 Monthly Has
Been Drawn.
BY BEN STERN

ing fund.- out of which John
D. Williams, director of the
state highway commission, has
for some time been paying state,
highway labor by checks signed
with his own name without go~
ing through the statutory reg
ulations that every state pay
ment must be made on care
fully itemized voucher, through
the state auditor s Office, was
discovered today.
Attaches of Williams office adj
mitted that the procedure was used,
and records in the state auditors
Office substantiated the report.
Records indicated that williams
draws as much as $4,000 month
from the state auditor on blanket
warrant, deposits it in his own
name, as highway director, in the
Bankers Trust Company bank here
and then writes the checks to pay
the workers.
His office says he draws these
checks in accordance with payrolls
which sub-department heads sub
NIT.
No Authorization Found
Attorney General James M. Oge
den said he had searched the stat
utes and found no authorization for
a revolving fund" for the highway
department. 1t was recalled that
former Governor Warren T. Nc
Cray asked for and Immediately
obtained the resignation Of l.. A.
Wright as highway director early
in his administration in 1922 when
it was discovered that Wright was
using a revolving fund"
AS result of the revolving fund"
plan, 1t was learned, the state gener-
al fund has not been receiving the
interest on the $4,000 or other
monthly amount turned over to Will
liamS.
Instead, the interest has been GO
ing to the highway fund, despite a
ruling of the attorney-general, Dec,
81, 1927, that the interest from the
highway departments share of the
various tax and fee moneys it re-
ceives shall go to the general fund.
This was for the purpose of keeping
the highway department within the
budget limits set by the state legis-
lature.
Williams was out of the city to-
day and could not be reached for
statement, but it was expected
that he would offer as his authority
for the revolving fund" provision
Of the general appropriation act Of
1927 that provides for working
capital for designated depart
ments.
Attempt TO Avoid Situation
However, Attorney General Og-
den declared that this provision ap-
plies only to those departments and
institutions specifically authorized
by the legislature to have "revolv-
ing funds" and the highway depart-
ment is not so designated.
State accountants say that the
situation boils down to the conclu-
sion that millions may be spent in
one year out OF the revolving fund,
the states only assurance that it
was expended legally being the
word of John D. Williams.
The general assembly has at
tempted to avoid. such situations
with this provision in the law:
Disbursements -. shall be by
voucher, specifically itemizing in
every particular the different pur-
poses for which the treasury warrant
Is authorized. These vouchers
shall not be approved by any officer
or officers authorized to approve
same unless so itemized, giving mir
utia Of detail, and when vouchers
are presented to the auditor of state
for warrants, they shall be accom-
panied by said itemized accounts
and statements"
Williams, it was learned, has been
bundltng the Cancelled checks re-
ceived back from the "lahorers" or
others to whom payments are made
on his revolving fund" account and
sending them to the state auditor,
with a warrant calling for the lump
sum to cover them all. Then he de-
positS this lump sum and repeats
the process the next month.
Attorney General Ogden says that
the law intends that here sl.an be
a separate voucher for each ex-
penditure-that a voucher shall be
drawn for each laborer paid and
that such voucher clearly shall set
out what the payment is for.
According to attaches of Williams
Office, the pay rolls upon which VIII
nams writes the checks are kept in
Williams office. One attache said
that so far es he knew these pay
rolls are not sworn to by the de-
parsment heads, who submits them
to Williams.