TMCnet News
Extended leave for Tulare fair chief: Candace Patterson cites personal reason for taking six months away from post.(Fresno Bee (CA) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Apr. 22--TULARE -- The chief operating officer of the Tulare County Fair is taking a six-month leave of absence, which will start as soon as a replacement can be found. Candace Patterson said her leave is not related to the release this week of a state report that said the use of private contractors and the fair's failure to directly supervise them were the main factors in the disappearance of almost $15,000 from the 2005 fair run's admissions till. "It's personal," said Patterson, when asked why she was taking the leave. She also declined to say whether she will be paid while on leave. A call to fair board president Peter Alvitre was not returned Friday. The audit, prepared by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, recommends the Tulare County Fair Board stop using private contractors for admissions, which is discouraged under state guidelines. State officials prepared the audit after Tulare County Fair officials discovered $14,960 was missing from the till of the fair's Sept. 14-18 run. The problem was first thought to be an accounting error by the fair's bank, but further investigation showed that was not the case. Patterson said she was not aware of the state regulation that discourages using contractors for admissions work, which she said is a common practice at other fairs across the state. She said the three private contractors, who were listed in the state audit as the final people to review the cash collected through admissions before verifying the amounts and depositing them, worked at other fairs. The report from the state said no fair employees were involved in daily accountability of the admissions deposits. Patterson said it's "terrible" that the money is missing, but she said the fair is working on correcting any problems. She said it will be up to the fair board to chose a replacement for her while she is on leave. Patterson replaced former CEO Phyllis Harmon, who was arrested in 2002 and accused of conflict of interest and misappropriation of public funds after officials alleged she set up a fake company with her daughter and another former part-time fair employee to skirt rules on the number of hours part-time employees can work. Prosecutors also charged that Harmon contracted with her own company for work at the fair, violating state rules. A jury acquitted Harmon and her daughter of several charges against them and deadlocked on others, including those against the former employee. Prosecutors refiled some charges against the women, but a Tulare County judge later dropped them, ruling prosecutors were not likely to get convictions. The reporter can be reached at [email protected] or (559) 622-2417. Advertisements Hungry Hair Salon and The Spa |