KTRH-740 reports the latest on the bonus scandal at Mayor Pro Tem Carol Alvarado’s office:
City controller Annise Parker says indications are that the payments just fell through the cracks within City Hall bureaucracy. She say [sic] part of the problem may be that Houston currently has three different methods of approving bonuses.
City Councilmember Carol Alvarado has said written initials on memos authorizing the payments to her mayor pro tem staff were forged. The four staff members who got the bonuses have been suspended.
Bearing the brunt of the blame for the bonuses is pro-tem office administrator Rosie Hernandez, who has so far refused comment.
The city Office of Inspector General has closed the pro-tem office while an investigation into who authorized the extra pay continues.
One employee from the city legal department has been assigned the administrative duties generally handled by the office.
Documents show employee Florence Watkins, who made a $50,000 salary in 2005, got bonuses totalling $46,500. Hernandez became one of the city’s top earners after a bonus brought her pay to $126,000.
That mostly seems like a recap of what we already know.
Presumably, the Harris County District Attorney’s office will be asked to get involved at some point, and we’ll start to find out more.
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