The Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts (AACD) is a government funded organization of participating Arkansas Conservation Districts. The AACD is required to comply with any lawful Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request made by any Arkansas Citizen
2019
Washington County Soil and Water Conservation District
vs
Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts
Violation of Arkansas Freedom of Information Law
Conservation License Plates are sold in each county in Arkansas, and , by law, a portion of the proceeds from these specialty license plates are to be paid to the local conservation district in each county. The Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts (AACD) collects these license plate proceeds from the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration each month. From time to time, the AACD issues checks to each district that had license plate sales. Sales of specialty license plates are sporadic and differ for each county resulting in a great deal of variation in payments remitted by AACD to each conservation district. The WCCD was curious about how much money had been paid to AACD by the state, and how much of the sales proceeds the AACD was keeping for itself.
In October of 2018 the Washington County Conservation District asked Debbie Moreland, Executive Director of AACD, to provide us with financial data concerning monthly payments the AACD received from the State of Arkansas for License Plate Sales. This information is public.
In a court ruling the WCCD obtained in 2016, the AACD was found to be a publicly funded organization that must comply with Arkansas FOIA (see our previous FOIA court order from 2016, below).
When Debbie Moreland and the AACD Executive Board refused to comply with the 2018 FOIA request for specialty license plate sales data, the district had no choice but to sue AACD once again. The AACD lost this legal battle, and they were compelled to divulge the requested data.
Once the AACD complied, we compared the AACD license plate income with the disbursements made to the districts. We were also able to compare AACD's reported data with data provided by the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, which the DFA easily provided the district through a separate FOIA request in October of 2018.
In October of 2018 the Washington County Conservation District asked Debbie Moreland, Executive Director of AACD, to provide us with financial data concerning monthly payments the AACD received from the State of Arkansas for License Plate Sales. This information is public.
In a court ruling the WCCD obtained in 2016, the AACD was found to be a publicly funded organization that must comply with Arkansas FOIA (see our previous FOIA court order from 2016, below).
When Debbie Moreland and the AACD Executive Board refused to comply with the 2018 FOIA request for specialty license plate sales data, the district had no choice but to sue AACD once again. The AACD lost this legal battle, and they were compelled to divulge the requested data.
Once the AACD complied, we compared the AACD license plate income with the disbursements made to the districts. We were also able to compare AACD's reported data with data provided by the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, which the DFA easily provided the district through a separate FOIA request in October of 2018.
2019 Court Order Compelling AACD to Comply with Arkansas Freedom of Information Act
2017
Washington County Soil and Water Conservation District VS Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts (AACD): Allegations of Incompetence and Mismanagement of AACD
The Washington County Soil and Water Conservation District (a division of state government) is one of 75 conservation districts throughout the state of Arkansas receiving tax dollars that are administered through the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission (ANRC).
Prior to fiscal 2017, all districts were compelled to be members of both the Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts (AACD) and the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) because the ANRC withheld tax dollars appropriated to the districts and delivered them directly to AACD and NACD to pay annual "dues" to these organizations. Both AACD and NACD are tax-exempt, private organizations that are funded with public funds, and each supposedly exists to represent the interests of conservation districts.
In July of 2015, the Washington County Soil and Water Conservation District began asking the Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts (AACD) for general information concerning their mission, finances, number of employees, tax status, etc. The AACD executive director, Debbie Moreland, and the AACD board of directors failed to provide us the requested information and the WCCD was forced to sue AACD under the Arkansas Freedom of Information act. We won this suit, obtained the information and produced letters and reports for AACD, ANRC, all conservation districts and the public (see below). The court found that Arkansas Association of Conservation Districts must comply with the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.
Based on our analysis of AACD records, our district developed a Two Page Summary and a 21 page Detailed Report concerning AACD's finances and business practices. In short, the WCCD found that the AACD executive director and her board appeared to be acting in their own interests and not in the interest of all conservation districts. We presented evidence that the AACD Executive Director and board members routinely engaged in wasteful spending to pay for unnecessary credit card interest, unnecessary travel, expensive hotels, expensive "retreats" for the executive director, etc. We also discovered that the AACD lost its tax exempt status for failure to file tax returns for years on end and their board routinely approved non-existent annual audits.
Also, based on our findings, we asked the ANRC to stop automatically paying our "dues" to these organizations. The ANRC complied and all districts now have the right to refuse AACD and NACD funding.
Sadly, in spite of all the problems the WCCD exposed with AACD and its manager, the AACD board expressed complete confidence in Debbie Moreland and, in a later meeting, approved a $5,000 raise for her.
Response to Debbie Moreland letter from WCCD: January 27, 2017
January 27, 2017
To: All Conservation District boards and their employees
From: The Board of Directors of Washington County Conservation District (WCCD)
Re: Letter and email from Debbie Moreland dated January 24, 2017
After reviewing the email and letter submitted by Debbie Moreland dated January 24, 2017, our board decided to respond to correct errors, to ask some questions, to point out areas of concern and to list some topics we feel are appropriate to discuss at the upcoming annual AACD meeting.
In closing, we recognize that AACD does a lot of good, but simply doing good things is not enough--you must also do right. We believe that it is past time to have a serious discussion about AACD, its employee and the future of the organization. We want to improve AACD and make it work for all districts, and we are proud to have performed the work that exposed AACD and its employee. We are ready to discuss this letter with anyone prior to the annual meeting. Feel free to contact me at (479) _____ or (479) _______ if you wish.
Sincerely,
____________________________
Allen Shumate, WCCD Chairman
To: All Conservation District boards and their employees
From: The Board of Directors of Washington County Conservation District (WCCD)
Re: Letter and email from Debbie Moreland dated January 24, 2017
After reviewing the email and letter submitted by Debbie Moreland dated January 24, 2017, our board decided to respond to correct errors, to ask some questions, to point out areas of concern and to list some topics we feel are appropriate to discuss at the upcoming annual AACD meeting.
- The AACD employee is a Public Employee and board members are Public Servants. Each are held to a high level of accountability by the taxpayers of this state, and as such, they are not simply “private citizens”. If they are not comfortable with this and the scrutiny that accompanies their positions, they should resign from service.
- Debbie deliberately conflates the topics of “district funding” with federal “cost-share” funding (such as EQIP). Cost share funds do not come to the districts and do not pay our employees or our bills. Debbie erroneously takes credit for federal funding then promotes it simply to deflect criticism of herself and the AACD board for their total failure to pursue actual district funding with the legislature.
- Debbie blames her failure to seek district funding on the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission and their “flat budgets”. We contend that it is the job of the AACD employee to explain the district’s importance to the legislature; thereby, ensuring the legislature understands both our importance and our continued need for proper funding levels. Failing to promote the districts at the legislature is a catastrophic failure of the AACD board and their employee.
- Three years ago, when ANRC attempted to obtain additional district funding, Debbie Moreland and the AACD board did absolutely nothing to secure it. They offer no legitimate answers as to why they did nothing; instead, we get more rhetoric about federal programs and AACD’s numerous projects that keep AACD flush with cash (for example, last year, districts statewide lost about $4,000 of license plate money that AACD kept for itself).
- What good does it do districts to have AACD grow rich, while we languish with funding levels that were set twenty years ago? Why are districts expected to continue bankrolling AACD and their employee, while we continue to struggle financially? In her letter, Debbie lists thirty work activities and not one of them concerns our funding.
- Debbie says that her “reputation and credibility have been damaged to the extent” that her “ability to get much help at the Capitol has been severely limited if not destroyed”. If this is true, it is because we have exposed the truth about her work performance and the actions of the AACD board of directors.
- Debbie insinuates that the districts are now on their own for funding. We take that to mean that AACD is now refusing to represent our financial interests at the legislature. This brings into question their whole reason to exist.
- Contrary to Debbie’s assertions, we believe that the AACD board of directors has little to be proud of concerning their performance. Who could be proud of the “leadership and fiscal management” of a board that wasted tens of thousands to prevent conservation districts and the public from seeing their financial information? Who would brag about a board that approved wasteful spending on opulent meals and unnecessary travel? Who would feel good about a board that never knew that their nonprofit exemption was revoked by the IRS? Who would boast of a board that not only failed to file tax returns for years on end but also routinely approved nonexistent annual audits? How proud can they be to approve a $5,000 bonus for Debbie Moreland in the same meeting where they reviewed a reported loss of $65,000? Perhaps they will answer us at the annual meeting.
- The dispute between WCCD and AACD exists solely because AACD refused to follow the law and allow WCCD to examine AACD financial records forcing our district to sue them. Asking Debbie to do her job is not seeking “favors”, and we are not seeking special treatment—average, decent treatment would suffice.
In closing, we recognize that AACD does a lot of good, but simply doing good things is not enough--you must also do right. We believe that it is past time to have a serious discussion about AACD, its employee and the future of the organization. We want to improve AACD and make it work for all districts, and we are proud to have performed the work that exposed AACD and its employee. We are ready to discuss this letter with anyone prior to the annual meeting. Feel free to contact me at (479) _____ or (479) _______ if you wish.
Sincerely,
____________________________
Allen Shumate, WCCD Chairman
Court Order: AACD is subject to Arkansas Freedom of Information Law by any Citizen of Arkansas
