Mullens City Hall open for business with exception of one office
Sep. 20—Mullens City Hall is open with the exception of one town office under some mysterious circumstances.
Rumors abounded Wednesday that city hall had been closed, with speculation running rampant as to why.
"It's nothing major right now," Mayor Alan Mills said, adding the town had been trying to get an audit done.
He said city hall is open with the exception of one office, but he wouldn't say which one.
"It's nothing to speculate about now," Mills said. "It's something that needed to happen. It's something that I've wanted to happen since I first walked through the door here.
"I was told not to speak of it," Mills said.
He wouldn't say who told him to remain quiet or what government agency had ordered the closure of the one office in city hall.
"Our standard policy is, we don't comment on an investigation by the Public Integrity and Fraud Unit," explained Kallie Cart, deputy chief of staff in the West Virginia Auditor's Office.
State law "designates the state auditor as the reporting agency for waste, fraud and abuse of state funds. Any citizen of this state may report this fraud to the auditor for examination and enforcement," according to the state auditor's website.
State code also "empowers the state auditor as the chief inspector and supervisor of local governments (i.e. counties, municipalities, school boards, etc.). This authorizes the state auditor to perform and/or require audits of these bodies, examine their affairs and refer matters for criminal prosecution," the website says.
During the Sept. 6 Wyoming County Commission meeting, commissioners discussed providing assistance to Mullens for a proposed sewer extension project that would include the communities of Maben, Otsego, Itmann and Pierpoint.
The commission had pledged $160,000 for engineering fees to kick-start the extension project, but several factors resulted in delays, officials said during the meeting.
Before the project can move forward, several issues must be addressed by town officials, according to Eric Combs, Region I Planning and Development Council.
Required audits of the town's financial records must be completed from 2016 to 2023, he said.
Annual audits are required of all local governments with the cost picked up by the agency being audited. For a town the size of Mullens, the cost would average between $3,000 and $4,000 for each audit, according to officials.
Additionally, the town is facing civil action due to solid waste from the existing sewer system entering the Guyandotte River. The town is being fined daily for the violation, and the cost is being paid by the town's insurance, according to county officials.
Combs said the town would have to take corrective action to address the sewer system issues and have the audits completed before the extension can begin.
The town also needs to hire a certified sewer plant operator and conduct a smoke test, Combs noted.
"Before we obligate that kind of money, I want to talk to the mayor and the sanitary board," Jason Mullins, county commission president, said during the Sept. 6 meeting.
Mullens officials were scheduled to meet with county commissioners Wednesday, but canceled, Mullins noted.
"They have some issues they need to address first," Mullins said after Wednesday's meeting.
