Puttin’ on the Ritz (Hilton, Hyatt, & Crowne Plaza): County Employee Credit Card Records

by P.D. Lesko

While County Administrator Greg Dill and the County Commissioners mull over asking County taxpayers to raise their own property taxes through a ballot initiative, Washtenaw County credit card and checkbook records which cover Jan-June 2024 show that County employees treated themselves to 368 stays at luxury hotels, limo rides, and even a $500 stay at a Las Vegas casino. During the same period, taxpayers footed the bills for plane trips, airport parking, and optional trip insurance. County taxpayers paid for County Trial Court, administrative, managerial and Sheriff’s Dept. employees to stay at the Ritz Carlton, the Crowne Plaza, the Grand Hotel, the Grand Traverse Resort, Mission Point Resort, Crystal Mountain Resort, Shanty Creek Resort, Hilton and Hyatt Regency hotels.

County credit card records show that between Jan-June 2024, County employees charged a total of $1.55 million to their County provided credit cards.

For the first time, the newspaper included an examination of spending by Washtenaw County 22nd Circuit Court employees, including department heads and judges. The examination showed, like other County employees, Trial Court employees treated themselves to travel, luxury hotels, including a $500 stay at a Las Vegas casino, and in the case of one Trial Court employee, almost $20,000 in travel and lodging over a six month period. Records showed Trial Court dept. heads also used their County credit cards to purchase fine art, and one Trial Court employee spent $468 on a handcrafted decorative item from Turkey.

On the other hand, credit card records show use that is precisely in line with the mission of County government. The Friend of the Court had 47 credit card charges for ZOOM services, as well as charges for resolution services. Children’s Services, for example, charged slightly more than $1,300 on pizza and McDonald’s for the children in their care. The Facilities Dept. charged thousands of dollars in building materials. The Trial Court Administration Dept. charged around $700 for Zoom services the first six months of 2024. The County Finance Office had monthly charges for storage of County records, and the The Prosecuting Attorney made 60 charges to Language Line, a service that provides on-demand language interpreters.

A County Gov. With A Track Record of Poor Employee Credit Card Usage Controls

The County’s former Racial Equity Officer II, Aliza Asbury Payne, resigned on Aug. 16, 2024 after it was revealed that she had used her County credit card to book a stay at a spa in Mexico, spent thousands on Uber and Lyft rides, treated herself to $600 per night stays at luxury hotels, including the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, and booked herself 80 days worth of travel within and outside the United States.

In March of 2024, County Administrator Greg Dill released a statement that Asberry Payne’s travel had been “approved.” As it turned out, under the not-so-watchful eyes of the County Commissioners (who supervise Dill) and Dill’s leadership, he and his Administrative-level employees were permitted to approve their own travel.

In her Aug. 2024 separation agreement, Asberry Payne was reportedly forced to admit to “poor judgement.”

Dill, in response to The A2Indy’s reporting, and subsequent reporting by MLive.com, announced he planned to implement a new travel policy. A draft of that policy was presented to the County Commissioners on Aug. 7 at their regular meeting. According to Dill’s new policy, travel expense receipts must be turned in by the employee within 60 days of that employee’s travel. The County Administrator said that County employee travel will reported to the public via Open Book. As of Sept. 14, no travel information had been posted.

The new policy states that all Washtenaw County employees may travel 24 days in a calendar year. Employees are “limited” to spending $5,000 per conference attended. Since Washtenaw County employs about 1,100 people (400 Sheriff’s Dept. employees), the new policy could, in theory, see County employees permitted to spend upwards of $11 million per year on attending conferences. Under the new policy, Washtenaw County’s 1,100 employees could receive over 27,000 paid travel days worth, conservatively, another $1.32 million. To these expenses would be added the cost of transportation and per diems.

Another part of Dill’s new travel policy outlines rules for booking air travel: “County employees and qualified individuals should structure their travel using the most logical and cost-effective flights. Coach/Economy class flights should be used unless undue travel burden arises due to scheduling difficulties. Department manager or supervisor, whomever is the appropriate staff as designated by the Department Head; approval should be obtained in the form of a written memorandum or email correspondence prior to the booking of any non-coach/economy level flights.”

A Freedom of Information Act request for all records of first-class travel by County employees showed that County Administrator Greg Dill repeatedly flew first class between 2021-2023. A County employee with knowledge of Dill’s travel habits confirmed that he regularly flies first class. The public records show that, in violation of the travel policy which requires booking the most economical ticket, Dill wrote a check to the County to cover the difference between the cost of his first-class ticket and the cost of a coach class ticket after his trip was completed. How that was calculated was not made clear in the records released to the newspaper.

Likewise, the County’s proposed travel policy precludes County employees from purchasing travel upgrades, including seats on an airplane and hotel rooms: “Purchasing the base fare, hotel, or other allowable expense on a County credit card. If after the purchase has been complete and the employee desires to upgrade their travel they may do so, however, any upgrades must be purchased in whole by the employee.”

The employee with knowledge of Dill’s County travel said that he routinely demands that his hotel rooms be upgraded, as well.

Another former County employee who read Dill’s draft policy called it, “A license to steal from taxpayers.” The employee said that the new policy, while more detailed than the old policy which it replaces, is still far too lax and retroactively codifies what have been Dill’s “exceedingly poor internal controls.”

For example, Dill’s draft policy only sets rates for meals (per diems). In the Livingston County, IL travel policy, updated in 2022, maximum rates are set for meals and hotel stays (both in and out-of-state): $190 per night in Chicago metro, and $130 per night out-of state.

Dill was asked in an email to comment on the criticisms of his new travel policy and allegedly “poor” internal controls. He has not yet responded.

County records show that the stays at the luxury hotels are not confined to one County department.

For example between Jan-June 2024, credit card records show County employees booked five stays at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. Three of the stays were booked by employees in the Trial Court Friend of the Court office, and the remaining stays were booked by staff employed in the Washtenaw County Community Support and Treatment Services (the Washtenaw County Mental Health Dept.). The average nightly rate for the seven stays was $717.70. Between Feb. 23, 2024 and Mar. 7, 2024, employees in the Community Support and Treatment Services booked 18 rooms at the Grand Traverse Resort at an average nightly rate between $245.60 and $330.60. The Public Health Dept. booked sixteen rooms at the Grand Traverse Resort during the first six months of 2024.

In just Jan. and Feb. 2924, County Administration Dept. employees, including County Administrator Greg Dill, and Ashley Hall, the Communications Dir. for the County Board of Commissioners, booked a dozen stays at Hilton hotels. The average room cost was $869.

22nd Circuit Court Employees’ Spending Examined

The 22nd Circuit Court costs taxpayers over $11 million annually, according to the County’s 2024 budget.

County records from 2024 show that taxpayers paid $509.89 for someone in the Circuit Court Administration Dept. to stay at the Silver Legacy Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV. Circuit Court Administrator Steven Matthews was asked in an email and a phone message to explain the charge. Matthews, who is paid $171,247.70, responded to say that he would answer the newspaper’s questions next week. Matthews oversees all non-judicial aspect of the Circuit Court management.

Matthews has an two-year degree in Business Management from Burlington County College (which he earned in three years) and a Certificate in Fire Fighting from that same institution. He was an Asst. Court Administrator for the Florence (New Jersey) Municipal Court for a decade. During that same time, according to his Linkedin page, he was also a security supervisor for APEX Executive Security, an Event Staff/Event Supervisor for Contemporary Services Corporation – CSC, and was on Team Security for the Philadelphia Eagles for six months.

The amount budgeted by the County Commissioners to pay the five Circuit Court judges is $45,724.12 per judge.

According to the Michigan Supreme Court website, “Circuit judges receive an annual salary from the state, which is calculated as the difference between 85 percent of the salary of a Supreme Court justice and $45,724. Circuit judges may also receive an additional salary from the county board of commissioners in any county where they regularly hold court. The additional salary must be paid at the same rate to all circuit judges who regularly hold court in that county. If the county pays more than $45,724 in additional salary, the state reimburses the county for $45,724.” 

Two of the Washtenaw County Circuit Court judges teach in the U-M Law School, as well.

Judge Timothy Connors earns $79,910.80 as a LEO Lecturer II. Judge Tracy E. Van den Bergh, a LEO Lecturer I, earns $18,300.40 from U-M in addition to her local and state salary.

While the Court system is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act, Court funding and spending are both public, including credit card charges and reimbursement funds paid to Circuit Court employees.

Circuit Court Records Document Travel

Checkbook records show that in April 2024, one Circuit Court Judge, Carol A. Kuhnke, was reimbursed for three $668 travel related expenses, and in June was reimbursed for another $595 in travel expenses. In May 2024, Kuhnke’s partner, Elizabeth Janovic (currently the Judicial Attorney for Judge Tracey E. Van den Bergh) was reimbursed for one $435.25 travel expense. Kuhnke’s was the first travel-related reimbursement for any Circuit Court judge going back to 2017.

Kristin Sample was hired in 2022 as the Dir. of the Circuit Court’s Problem Solving Courts/Special Programs Director. She earned $71,942 in 2023.

In Feb. 2023, Sample paid $375 to attend the Michigan Association of Treatment Court Professionals (MATCP) conference and on Mar. 3, 2023 made two charges for a total of $819 at a Courtyard by Marriott hotel.

In Feb. of 2024, Kristen Sample charged $1,980, $890, and $495 for the MATCP conference. In April of 2024, Sample made another $495 charge for the MATCP conference. The 2024 two-day (Oct. 23-24) MATCP conference took place in Port Huron, MI at the Blue Water Convention Center. Sample also attended the four-day National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) conference in May 2024 in Anaheim, CA. In Feb. 2024, she made a $1,790 charge to attend the NADCP. In March 2024, she also made two $895 charges and another $1,790 charge for a NADCP conference.

Between Jan.-June 2024, Kristen Sample booked 17 hotel stays, including six at Hyatt hotels, one charge at The Graduate in East Lansing (also a Hyatt hotel), and five charges at Courtyard by Marriott hotels. Of Kristen Sample’s 37 credit card changes in the first half of 2024, she made 26 charges related to attending conferences and travel. In six months, Sample spent almost $20,000 on conference fees, travel and lodging. It remains to be seen if Sample used her County-issued credit card to make purchases for any third parties.

The County checkbook shows in May 2024 Kristen Sample also was reimbursed for three travel-related expenses: $538.20, $643.20 and $150.60. In June, Sample was also reimbursed for a $544.36 travel-related expense.

To put Sample’s travel and lodging expenses into perspective, the County Sheriff employees 400 people. In the first six months of 2024, the Sheriff booked $43,261 of travel and lodging.

In July 2024, Sample used her County-provided credit card to charge a $313 piece of art from the artist Robert Ferrucci.

Court Administrator Steven Matthews was asked about Sample’s extensive travel, hotel stays and who approved her purchase of a piece of art using public money. He said he plans to respond.

The Problem Solving Court dept. isn’t the only Circuit Court dept. where credit card charges raise questions.

The County Circuit Court Friend of the Court (FOC) enforces parenting time orders from the Court. When Friend of the Court Dir. attorney Kristy Bray was hired in 2016, she vowed to “put children first.” In 2023, Bray was paid $132,375.88.

FOC credit card records show that in just the first half of 2024, there were three charges for rooms at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. The average room rate was $520. There were also charges for rooms at the Park Place Hotel in Traverse City, MI. The room rate, according to the credit card statements, was $397.94.

In addition, FOC credit card records revealed a $468.62 charge from HALOHOPEDES (HalohopeDesign), an Etsy.com shop whose sellers are located in Kayseri, Türkiye. HALOHOPEDES sells “Handcrafted Woodwork, Furniture, Home & Office Decoration.”

Court Administrator Steven Matthews was asked about the purchase from Halohopedes, and who approved the purchase of a $468.62 “handcrafted” item shipped from Turkey.

While there are multiple $895 charges at the Crowne Plaza Hotel made by Trial Court administrative staff on behalf of third parties, there are also smaller charges that raise questions. Between Jan-June 2024, the Trial Court charged taxpayers for the cost of Washtenaw County Bar Association membership fees for nine lawyers who work in the Trial Court. The charges ranged from $65 to $195. Steven Matthews was asked why taxpayers should pay a lawyer’s bar association’s fees when that lawyer is employed and paid by the Circuit Court.

County OCED Office Spends Thousands on Golden Limousine Rides

In the Fall of 2023 , County Administrator Greg Dill hired Toni Kayumi to lead the County’s Office of Community Economic Development (OCED). Insiders at the YMCA, where Kayumi worked prior to being hired by Greg Dill, alleged Kayumi was forced out of her job as the CEO and Exec. Dir. of the YMCA when an investigation concluded she had fostered a hostile/toxic work atmosphere. County Administrator Greg Dill is a member of the YMCA Board. Kayumi was hired in at a salary of $170,448. In 2022, the Community Economic Development Dir. was paid $131,504. In 2022, the OCED employed 27 people. County records show in one year Kayumi has increased her staff by 40 percent to 37 employees.

County credit card records show that between Jan-June 2024 Kayumi’s dept. has spent thousands of dollars of taxpayer funds on Golden Limousine rides. In April 2024, Kayumi’s dept. spent $1,587 on one Golden Limousine ride.

Kayumi is not the only County employee to purchase expensive limo and metrocar rides.

In April 2023, when County Commissioners Hodge, Sanders, Lyte, Somerville and former Racial Equity officer Alize Asberry Payne and one of her employees went to the Mackinac Conference on Mackinac Island, Asberry Payne charged $2,900 for Metro Car rides from the County Building on Main Street in Ann Arbor to Shepler’s Dock in St. Ignace, just across the Mackinac Bridge, an eight hour ride.

A Problem That Has Been Curtailed, But Not Resolved

In an award-winning series of articles published in 2014 (“Viva Las Vegas”), The Ann Arbor Independent examined two years of Washtenaw County’s credit card records. This comes from “County Taxpayers Foot The Bill For County Employee Stays At Vegas Casinos, Michigan Resorts & Other Luxury Lodgings“:

“An analysis of credit card charges made by Washtenaw County employees between 2012 and 2014 shows multiple charges for luxury lodging, meals out and even a $1,600 trip to the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas charged by Greg Dill, the county’s infrastructure management director who earns $101,000 per year.

Dill is now the County Administrator and County Commissioners recently raised his pay to over $300,000.

In 2014, The A2Indy reported: “In 2005, Mr. Dill took a $52,000 buy-out from Washtenaw County and then hired on as the Oak Park Public Schools chief of staff. The Detroit News reported in 2008 that Dill was placed on paid administrative leave and asked to resign from his job “after having a private shower facility and luxury gym built at the Oak Park Preparatory Academy.” The room included showers, tile floors, cherry cabinets, a luxury gym and a big screen television. Dill said he paid for the renovations with his own money and that some of the items were added by the contractors without his knowledge. In 2008, he was re-hired by Washtenaw County.”

In 2014, The A2Indy also reported, “Between 2011 and 2013, Washtenaw County employees charged over $10,200 to their credit cards for charges at Hilton hotels.” In the first half of 2024, records show County employees booked 43 stays at Hilton hotels and charged $25,123.