ATLANTA — A veteran metro area district attorney says the state legislature should make it a criminal offense to violate the anti-gratuities clause in the state constitution.
Channel 2 investigative reporter Richard Belcher learned that an independent investigation just concluded that bonuses paid by former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed were illegal.
Reed authorized hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonuses and gifts in his final days in office late last year.
[READ: Ex-mayor Kasim Reed doles out $500k in bonuses, gifts on way out]
Lawyers hired by current Mayor Keisha Lance bottoms' administration concluded this month that those payments violated the state constitution.
But Belcher learned Wednesday that doing something about illegal gratuities isn't easy.
TRENDING STORIES:
“I think it's time for the legislature to take a long look at that gratuity clause, probably to come up with language that pretty specific and clear that says, if you violate this, this is what happens to you,” said Cobb County District Attorney Vic Reynolds.
[READ: Atlanta police chief gives back bonus she received from Reed in his final days]
Reynolds is calling on the state legislature to take a serious look at the state constitution’s ban on giving tax money to an individual or group unless the government has received an immediate benefit in exchange.
“What you can't do is give somebody extra money, call it a gratuity, call it a bonus, for things that have already been done by that particular individual -- like his or her job,” Reynolds said.
That’s what happened in the waning days of Reed's administration, when he approved hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonuses and gifts for city employees.
[READ: Year-end bonuses under Kasim Reed cost Atlanta taxpayers $811K]
Bottoms asked for an investigation.
The report obtained by Channel 2 Action News and our investigative partners at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution said while the city code is ambiguous, the bonuses clearly violated the gratuities clause in the constitution.
“Municipalities cannot give donations or contributions to employees after the fact, after they've done their job,” said Sara Henderson with Common Cause Georgia. “It's a big deal because it doesn't look ethical at all.”
But Reynolds told Belcher that criticizing something because it violates the constitution isn't enough.
“It needs to be criminal penalties?” Belcher asked Reynolds.
[READ: City to open investigation into bonuses, party prizes by former Atlanta mayor]
“I think in, in circumstances where gratuities have been paid to employees, and it's not proper, absolutely it needs to be a criminal prosecution and criminal statutes,” Reynolds said.
The city report which found the bonuses unconstitutional also concluded there was no evidence they were granted in bad faith.
Reed sent Belcher a statement when we broke the story saying he relied on the advice of various city personnel and argued that the bonuses were consistent with historical practices.
Cox Media Group
