I think I know why the Clerk of the Court is resisting a forensic audit of his office. The results are sure to show his gross mismanagement of public funds.
During a recent public record request I learned that Mr. Reams paid his finance director, Charles Culp, over $300,000 last year. This extraordinary salary is quite puzzling because Mr. Reams did not advertise this position. One would think that the clerk would have wanted to receive as many applicants as possible for this highly paid position. There is no application on file from Mr. Culp. There is no resume on file, either. How Mr. Culp was selected for employment with the clerk’s office is a complete mystery. He apparently didn’t even have a contract for employment until January, 2021.
Mr. Culp’s qualifications for this position are also unknown. This payment was for the services of one individual, not an accounting firm. Mr. Culp is not certified as a CPA in Florida. There is no record of any of Mr. Culp’s qualifications in the clerk’s office. It appears to me that the services provided by Mr. Culp could be done by an experienced bookkeeper at a significantly lower cost.
Three years ago, Mr. Culp was paid just over $166,000 by the Clerk of the Court’s office. Two years ago, he was paid $181.450. Last year his gross pay was $309,137.50 . It is inconceivable to me that Mr. Reams could justify the increase Mr. Culp’s already hefty recompense by over $127,000 two years ago. By contrast the highest paid employee in the Leon County Clerk of Court’s office makes a little over $122,000 per year; in Taylor County it is just over $108,000; in Wakulla County it is just under $99,000
I have asked Mr. Reams twice how Mr. Culp was selected for his position, what his qualifications for the position are, and how his rate of payment was determined. There has been no response to date.
Jay Adams