WINNSBORO – Winnsboro is taking Fairfield County to court. On March 30, the Town of Winnsboro formally filed suit against the county, claiming in court papers that the county’s solid waste fee shouldn’t apply to Winnsboro town residents. The suit seeks a declaratory judgment that the $63 per ton fee is “invalid and illegal”, according […]
County didn’t know its financial status for months
April 7, 2022 By
WINNSBORO – Fairfield’s auditing firm concluded there’s a “significant deficiency” in how the county keeps its financials. “A significant deficiency is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control that is less severe than a material weakness, yet important enough to merit attention by those charged with governance,” the long-awaited financial audit states. […]
Bell: Proposed dept needs are $10M over budget
March 31, 2022 By
WINNSBORO – Fairfield County Council approved a lease agreement to operate a recreation site despite a majority of members not knowing the full cost or addressing low demand for recreation. On Monday night, the council voted 5-2 for the lease agreement with Dominion Energy. Council members Doug Pauley and Clarence Gilbert opposed. Pauley said the […]
Bell blames employees for late audit
March 17, 2022 By
WINNSBORO – Moses Bell doesn’t think the public should have been informed about why Fairfield County failed to properly submit a financial audit or how it spends taxpayer money. “This was a personnel issue and I felt that it shouldn’t be in the public,” Bell, the council chairman, said. Those remarks came in response to […]
Bell notified in November of critical audit timeline
March 10, 2022 By
WINNSBORO – County officials appeared to be surprised to learn on Feb. 1, 2022, that the county’s FY2021 audit had not been submitted to the state on Jan. 1, 2022, as required by law. But documents obtained by The Voice show that the S.C. Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom sent County Council Chairman Bell a letter […]
Council majority planning third rec center
March 3, 2022 By
WINNSBORO – Mitford’s community center averages one to three people a day. Monticello’s averages three to five. Nobody visited either center at all in November. With $3M already earmarked for three rec centers in the county, council wants to spend more taxpayer money on parks and recreation. On Monday, council voted 5-2 to lease 8.12 […]
Greene waffles on council transparency
March 3, 2022 By
WINNSBORO – According to reports from the S.C. Comptroller General, the state continues to withhold funding amid delays in the county completing its annual audit. The amount being withheld reportedly stands at about $700,000. County Administrator Malik Whitaker called it a “mini-crisis” in emails obtained by The Voice in February. “We have a mini-crisis situation […]
Whitaker threatens to stop accepting Town’s waste
March 3, 2022 By
Taylor: Town Prepared To Go To Court WINNSBORO – During county council’s meeting Monday night, County Administrator Malik Whitaker doubled down on the county’s position that the Town of Winnsboro owes over $60,000 in unpaid solid waste fees. In a letter to Winnsboro Town Manager Jason Taylor, dated Nov. 15, 2021, Whitaker wrote, “For the […]
Submit Fairfield County survey by March 7
March 2, 2022 By
FAIRFIELD COUNTY – The Fairfield County Community Development Department seeks public input on Fairfield County’s 2022 Comprehensive Plan. Residents have until Monday, March 7 to complete the online survey to voice concerns and opinions to community leaders. Along with an open comment section, some questions included in the survey are: “How would you rate the […]
Fairfield County Council agenda blunders multiply
February 17, 2022 By
WINNSBORO – Fairfield County Council once again had to pull an agenda item at the last minute after failing to follow proper meeting procedures. At Monday night’s meeting, the council tabled third reading of an ordinance relating to the sale of property within the Fairfield County industrial park. The reason? Council had never held a […]
