Pat Evon, Hamburg Treasurer

Why is Patrick Evon being Recalled?
Should Patrick Evon be forced to resign?
What has Patrick Evon done wrong?

If you have the feeling that government has become dysfunctional in Hamburg Township, you aren't alone. It wasn't always this way. Let me illustrate how a major mistake was handled two years ago.

My predecessor decided to pay for some purchases by not borrowing money through bond issues or installment purchase agreements, and the loans ended up being illegal. She should have known better and the township attorney should have known better or the checks and balances process should have discovered this. When the mistake was discovered, the township paid off the loans. We didn't have residents come to the Board meetings and demand that people resign. We didn't have Board members engaging in major league theatrics. We didn't have recall petitions circulating. The Auditor wrote a comment and everyone moved on.

How that same mistake would be treated today depends on who you are. For some people just about any mistake will be totally ignored. For example, over a three month period of time this year, the Accounting department requested over $2 million in erroneous money transfers that could have seriously impacted the township if they hadn’t been detected (check and balance). The Board has shown zero interest in those mistakes.

In contrast, the Board has devoted hours of attention to every mistake by the Clerk since the day he took office from Joanna Hardesty. They've done the same for me since the day I rescinded my appointment of Julie Hardesty as Deputy Treasurer. And since they couldn't control the appointment of the new Deputy Clerk and Deputy Treasurer, both political appointees, they decided neither should be paid.

But this goes beyond unprofessional behavior at Board meetings and personal threats. In the Treasurer's Office, we have lost both full-time employees – the Deputy Treasurer (who left because she wasn't paid) and the Treasury Assistant (who left because of the turmoil). The Board is willing to fill those positions only if I give up my statutory right to appoint a deputy and my statutory responsibility to supervise treasury functions. I would do that if I thought it would be in the township's best interest. But township law separates the treasury and accounting functions as a check and balance. It would be irresponsible on my part to abandon legally mandated safeguards just to make my life easier and to get along with the Board. (Although the Board may think this is a non-issue I do not.)

I am concerned about the Board and the recall effort however, I don’t understand how they can gain any credibility when the accusations are not true or have been taken out of context. These events happened during a time of transition or when the treasury was extremely understaffed. I ran for the office of Treasurer to serve the residents not the Board of Trustees.

On the reverse side of this letter are the charges that appear on the recall petition. Remember; there is no legal requirement that the charges made on a recall petition have to be true. Nor are there slander protections for elected officials. I have provided an honest response for each charge. You be the judge.

So who are these people circulating petitions for you to sign? They are Hardesty supporters who still haven’t gotten over her defeat last year. Their names are listed on her campaign literature. Is all this a coincidence? I don’t think so. On more than one Tuesday evening after Board meetings this past summer, including the night of the kick off for the recall, Joanna Hardesty, some Board members and the whole recall team were seen at Tim Wiggle's place on Chilson road. Draw your own conclusions. I’ve drawn mine.

So how should you respond when asked to sign their petition? Tell them it’s time for truth in Hamburg.





Patrick L. Evon
Hamburg Township Treasurer

Paid for by Patrick Evon
www.KeepEvon.com