Commission chair blasts AG report as 'petty politics'

The chair of the Greater Moncton Sewerage Commission says criticism of excessive spending and a lack of accountability are a backlash from the former Liberal government.

Ron LeBlanc and his commission were at the centre of a scathing report released Wednesday by Auditor General Kim MacPherson.

The report  raised several concerns about the commission's finances, including excessive travel and financial mismanagement, as well as a lack of oversight and accountability.

The Opposition Liberals are calling for a public inquiry and for LeBlanc to be immediately removed from his position.

'I hold my head up high.' —Ron LeBlanc, commission chair

But LeBlanc maintains the commission has served the community well and describes the call for him to step down by Liberal MLA Donald Arseneault, a former Liberal cabinet minister, "petty politics."

LeBlanc said he believes he's being attacked because his board refused to allow the former Shawn Graham government to make patronage appointments to the commission.

"We knew when we would stand up for the citizens that we would be attacked, and this is not a surprise to me," he said.

"This is the price you pay for serving your community in a public fashion."

The former Liberal government asked the auditor general to investigate the province's wastewater commissions. MacPherson told a legislative committee the Department of Environment did not tell the Office of the Auditor General to investigate a specific commission and she said the office could carry out its audit in any direction that it saw fit.

LeBlanc, who was appointed in 1983, said he's proud of what he's accomplished during his time as chair, particularly the commission being a worldwide leader when it comes to turning waste into usable compost.

"I hold my head up high," he said, adding that nothing would change when he went to work Thursday morning, the day after the report was released.

He did, however, hint that he might step down on his own in the near future, saying there are other things he wants to do.

Chair will revisit Christmas party bills

The auditor general reviewed the three largest commissions in the province - the Greater Moncton Sewerage Commission, the Greater Shediac Sewerage Commission and the Fredericton Area Pollution Control Commission — following concerns by members of the public as well as a former minister of environment.

A line-by-line comparison of revenues, expenditures and reserves reported in the financial statements of the three commissions showed some "significant differences" in the expenditure patterns and reserves in Moncton, the report states.

Some of the questionable financial practices outlined in the report include international trips totaling $87,000, Christmas parties costing up to $7,000, the chair's BlackBerry usage charges averaging $550 per month, and $9,600 a year on office expenses for which no invoices were filed.

MacPherson said the municipalities involved — Moncton, Dieppe and Riverview — as well as local ratepayers should be concerned with the current situation.

The report calls on the provincial government to strengthen the governance and accountability of wastewater commissions.

LeBlanc dismissed many of the criticisms in the report, including the fact that he was reimbursed $800 a month for office supplies with no receipts.

"It was approved by the board. There's an invoice for that," he said.

Asked why the auditor general wasn't aware of the invoice, LeBlanc replied, "She never asked."

LeBlanc agrees that his BlackBerry bill was too much, but said he now has a plan that's more appropriate to his usage.

He also promises to revisit the $7,000 Christmas parties.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Moncton says he's going to take some time to study the auditor general's report before taking any action.

George LeBlanc said he wants to look at the report more thoroughly before considering any changes.

"I would say that this provides an opportunity for us to have a good look at the governance structure and accountability here and make some positive changes," he said.

"I think that the auditor general has raised a number of concerns and we're going to go through them very carefully and I would hope that we can work with the province of New Brunswick to address those deficiencies and I would hope that we'd have some consultation and some input with the province so that these issues can be properly addressed."