IN THE WAKE OF BISD CUTS, FULLER ENVISIONS $$$ PAYOFF

By Juan Montoya
With rumors swirling around whose head is on the Brownsville Independent School District chopping block and who is being interviewed by the Texas Rangers of FBI, one person who is eyeing a nice windfall is none other former district CFO Tony Fuller.
The BISD budget committee meets today to decide which cuts will be less painful to the employees and staff. Already at least 20 computer assistance positions have been trimmed from the budget. That means that some district students will not receive the assistance they need to enter the brave new world of cyberspace.
But back to Tony. You remember Fuller. He was the fiscally-challenged CFO who thought that a good (accepted) accounting practice to address deficit budgets was to dip into the fund balance and voila! you have a balanced budget.
In fact, Fuller presided over three consecutive deficit budgets before the results of a forensic budget recommended that the district let him go. Under his leadership:
In 2008-2009, BISD "designated for use from fund balances" $26.542 million.
In 2009-2010, BISD "designated for use from fund balances" $11.436 million.
In 2010-2011, BISD "designated for use from fund balances" $6.511 million.
Now, if you in your household economy were to operate in this fashion, you would have a "shortfall," a "liquidity problem," etc., but heaven forbid that you would call it a household "deficit."

That was followed by the May 2011 incident when sports officials (referees, umpires, zebras, etc.) who had officiated at BISD events cried foul after they attempted to cash their checks only to find that they – like a football or basketball – bounced.
Fuller was also said to be "embarrassed" when he notified board members and administrators in May 2011 that between 100 and 200 district checks had bounced.

"I'm embarrassed, too," he is said to have told them during a meeting with the district board.

It is unknown how the district's athletic department and finance department got to be in that sad state of affairs, but after the huddle Fuller said he would try to find a way out of the mess ASAP.

"It can't be soon enough," said a district employee. "Can you imagine what people who got those checks think of us? It's downright embarrassing for the entire district and for the city of Brownsville.
"And this includes officials not only from Brownsville, but from out of town as well," said the source. "I can just imagine what they must think of us now."
The full extent of Fuller's failure came to light in the findings of the forensic audit by Deffenbaugh and Associates which stated:

"Former Chief Financial Officer Fred Anthony "Tony" Fuller, in spite of direct written instructions from the BISD board, transferred funds in the amount of $47,689 in an unauthorized manner.

(Fuller) authorized processing payments out of the Local Maintenance Fund instead of the Science Laboratory Grant Program to the architectural contractor Gomez Mendez/Saenz Inc. These actions were completed knowingly and without authorization in direct violation of the board's direction and the Texas Education Code for failure to comply with budget requirements, Class C misdemeanor.

We recommend that the resolution of Fuller's contract status be expeditiously handled."

Fuller sued the BISD trustees and administrators saying that they had used the forensic findings of Deffenbaugh and Associates to not renew his contract.
It really doesn't matter that U.S. Magistrate Ronald G. Morgan recommended to the federal district court presided by judge Andrew Hanen that Fuller's state law claims against Deffenbaugh be "dismissed with prejudice pursuant to the Texas Citizens' Participation Act, or in the alternative, be dismissed without prejudice for lack of pendent jurisdiction."
With the change of the BISD board, the former CFO has found he has friends in the right places. With the new makeup of the majority on the BISD board – Otis Powers, Jose Chirinos, Minerva Peña and Cesar Lopez – Fuller's attorneys have found a ready ear and could very well force the BISD's legal counsel to offer Fuller a settlement that might include guarantee of a position with the district.
That in spite of the fact that he had been carried by the district for two years and offered other positions. He remains adamant he wants to be the CFO again.
Now, as the BISD budget committee meets today to determine where the cuts will have to be made to keep the district afloat, his attorneys have scheduled depositions in his case to take place next week. Someone somewhere in the district or classrooms will bear the brunt of whatever settlement they can shape with the board's majority.