FORT SCOTT, KS — The Bourbon County Commission voted Monday to designate District 3 Commissioner Joe Allen as an authorized signer for accounts payable checks, resolving a week-long standoff triggered by Chairman Samuel Tran's refusal to sign previously approved payments.
The impasse began after Tran refused to sign accounts payable checks totaling $309,460.54, which the board had approved in a 4-1 vote during the May 4 meeting. Tran, who cast the only dissenting vote on that expenditure, argued that he was not legally required to sign the documents.
County Attorney James Crux addressed the board directly, warning that the delay had already disrupted his office and left contract attorneys unpaid.
"This is a board of governance. We have to be able as a county to continue operating and to continue governing," Crux said. "That is something that we have to be able to communicate and at least work together enough to ensure that happens, and that seems to be failing at this point. It needs to change and that's all I have to say."
Commissioner Gregg Motley pressed for an immediate resolution.
"The checks need to be signed," Motley said. "Joe [Allen] and I are not on the signature card. We are incurring late fees and Mr. Crux's employees are not getting paid. Contract employees are not getting paid because checks are sitting unsigned. How do we take care of that today?"
Chairman Tran defended his refusal by citing research and external legal consultations.
"No, I spoke to legal. I spoke to no less than four lawyers and I know the statutes," Tran said. "I understand the statutes. The communication or lack of the communication seems to be pointed in one direction where communication is a two-way street".
Commissioner Joe Allen expressed confusion over the abrupt change.
“I don't know where this came from because it's been standard practice, I guess, for years that the chairman has signed these checks. So I don't know why the change now.” Allen said.
To resolve the issue, Tran initially proposed that the board transfer his signing authority to Executive Assistant Laura Krom .
"She's taking care of everything else. She's our executive assistant," Tran said. "She can do it just as well as any one of us".
Allen questioned if such a move would fit state statutes, and said that if a signature was required from the commission’s side, it should come from an elected official sitting at the table.
The board ultimately reached a compromise when Commissioner Gregg Motley noted that the chairman has the authority to designate a person to sign. Tran then moved to designate Commissioner Allen as the authorized signer. The motion passed unanimously.
"If it gets people paid and we get through this issue, I don't care at this point," Allen said prior to the vote.
In an interview with the Bourbon County Monitor on Tuesday, County Treasurer Jennifer Hawkins said it had long been standard practice for the chairman to sign accounts payable checks, and that Tran had done so without issue until the week of May 4.
"For as long as I have been with the county, which is almost 13 years, the chairman has always signed accounts payable checks," Hawkins said.
Hawkins said she first became aware of the problem on Tuesday, May 5.
"I had a check that was supposed to be signed. I went over to get that check from the clerk's office because our customer's going to pick it up. They notified me then that Sam wouldn't sign the checks," Hawkins said. "At that point, I contacted the chairman to see what was going on, why he wouldn't sign the checks, and he told me that he had spoken to legal and he didn't have to."
Hawkins said that the county's auditors had also given their opinion on the matter.
"Our auditors weighed in on this subject citing KSA 10-803, which states that warrant checks shall be signed by the chairman," Hawkins said. "And then she also stated KSA 19-534, which covers the checks that are issued by the treasurer's office."
Tran did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
Linked below this article are the May 4 Accounts Payable report and an excerpt from the meeting minutes recording the discussion and vote on that report.
Motion to Restore Clerk's Payroll Software Access Fails
The commission voted down a motion to restore read-only access to payroll software reports for County Clerk Susan Walker. Commissioner Gregg Motley, who brought the motion, said that Walker needs direct access to PayEntry reports because the system is not integrated with the county's accounting software.
Motley said he contacted county HR contractor Dr. Steve Cohen directly about the dispute. Cohen initially questioned why Walker needed access to payroll reports, Motley said, but reversed course after Motley explained she was required to make manual accounting entries because the two systems are no longer integrated.
"He said, 'Oh, okay, I see. I'll get that changed,'" Motley said. "And instead of changing, giving her access back, he had reports, he had Laura [Krom] sending reports. Well, that's grossly inefficient. Just give her access, give her sign on, give her access to the report she needs. It's just common sense. It just seems like a formula to create more steps and more issues, more communication problems.”
Walker told commissioners that the reports she receives through the current arrangement are inadequate and lack necessary cost-center breakdowns.
“The problem with the report that I'm receiving is it's not broken down by cost center and what it's requiring me to do is spend hours because I cannot get it in an Excel format that allows me to break it down into the proper codes…” Walker said.
Tran and District 5 Commissioner Mika Milburn-Kee opposed the motion, citing concerns that the software's read-only access level exposes employees' private information beyond what the clerk requires.
The motion failed, with Tran, Milburn-Kee, and District 2 Commissioner David Beerbower voting against, and Motley and Allen voting in favor.
Other Actions
In other business, the commission:
- Area Agency on Aging: Citizen Michael Hoyt informed the commission that federal defunding has severely impacted the Area Agency on Aging’s ability to deliver "Meals on Wheels" to homebound residents . He requested the board keep these services in mind during upcoming budget cycles.
- Approval of Accounts Payable: The board approved a new round of accounts payable for May 8, 2026, in the amount of $457,015.06.
- Resolution 22-26: Commissioners voted to adopt Resolution 22-26 regardinf employee vacation and sick leave benefits following a consensus reached in a prior work session. An in-depth article on that resolution can be found here.
- Minutes and Tax Corrections: The commission approved the minutes from the May 4 meeting and authorized several tax corrections .
