STERLING BOARD OF HEALTH INSPECTOR DAVID “NOWHERE MAN” FAVREAU’S COMPLETELY NON-ITEMIZED TIME SHEETS

Recently I was provided a couple of BOH Inspector David “Nowhere Man” Favreau’s completely non-itemized time sheets by a source. Favreau, mind you, just happens to run a private business called “David Favreau Septic Services.” SEE https://www.favreausepticservices.com/ No appearance of impropriety or conflict of interest here folks–NOOOOO SIRRREEE–so just move along now. You just know that Mr. Favreau will put the Sterling taxpayers’ interests first, right?! I mean, what could possibly be wrong with this set-up???

But why would a guy supposedly just on salary putting in, supposedly, just  forty (40) hours per week at taxpayer expense, be submitting TIME SHEETS for payment? After all, our COMPLETELY HONEST (wink, wink) Sterling officials have always led us townspeople to believe that salaried employees were INELIGIBLE to receive OVERTIME payments. So, on 15 April 2021, in accordance with Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 66, Sec. 10, I mailed a hard-copy “Public Records Request” to Town Clerk Kathleen Farrell using the form she provides on the Town website.
It was in all CAPS and requested “COMPLETE COPIES OF ALL BOARD OF HEALTH AGENT DAVID FAVREAU’S TIME SHEETS SUBMITTED TO TOWN ADMINISTRATOR KELLIE HEBERT FOR THE PERIOD 1 JANUARY 2021 THROUGH 9 APRIL 2021.”

On 22 April 2021 the Town Treasurer, Victoria Smith, sent an email to me purportedly with the requested records attached. She ccd Mr. Favreau, Kellie Hebert, and Kathleen Farrell. After comparing those records with the copies I already possessed–and that the aforementioned ‘public servants’ did not know I had–I saw that two boxes on each sheet, one labelled “Notes” and the other “Approval History,” had been ‘disappeared.’ So, on 24 April 2021 I sent a reply to Ms. Smith, ccd to the aforementioned ‘public servants,’ and demanded, bluntly, the unaltered Favreau time sheets, else I would report the matter to appropriate state officials. You see, altering public records is a crime under Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 66, Sec. 15. SEE https://malegislature.gov/laws/generallaws/parti/titlex/chapter66/section15

Our ‘public servant’ Victoria Smith, Town Treasurer, did not like the tone of my 24 April 2021 email so on 26 April she emailed to tell me that she was ‘closing’ out my request. OH, I SEE, you can commit an apparent violation of Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 66, Sec. 15, and, when called out on it, just ‘close out’ a guy’s Public Records Request! That was BULLSH*T so, by reply email, I called out her BULLSH*T and referred to an apparent joint undertaking to violate Ch. 66, Sec. 15. I ccd
Mr. Favreau, Ms. Farrell, Ms. Hebert, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, the three Sterling Select Board members, and others.

Later that day I received an email from Ms. Hebert–are you detecting some ‘musical chairs’ or passing around a ‘hot potato’ here???–this time with Mr. Favreau’s requested time sheets attached, including the boxes labeled “Notes” and “Approval History.” She indicated that my earlier email to Ms. Smith was uncouth and indicated that my 15 April 2021 Public Records Request was somehow deficient in not triggering all the computer-manipulated “fields” that I sought. YEAH, so ‘public servants’ flying their desks can manipulate/delete/alter/insert “fields,” in this case two important boxes, that members of the public may not even know about and say that our Public Records Requests somehow came up short. SO, if ‘public servants’ flying their desks can computer-alter public records and produce them with deletions and omissions, what good is Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 66, Sec. 15, the state statute that makes altering public records a crime??? Perhaps Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey should issue some instructions about that. I sent an email reply to Ms. Hebert and called out her BULLSH*T too.

DAVID “NOWHERE MAN” FAVREAU’S TIME SHEETS

ALL of Mr. Favreau’s time sheets are completely non-itemized. On each sheet are two week’s worth of daily entries. In the upper left corner, among other things, it says “BOARD OF HEALTH” and under that “01510-51110 BOH Inspector Salary.” That’s his SALARY identifier number. In the far left column are dates purportedly worked. In the next column are the ‘from’ and ‘to’ hours purportedly worked. Toward the middle, corresponding to each date purportedly worked, is ONLY THIS–“519-BOARD OF HEALTH_____________________01510-51110 BOH Inspector Salary.” After that a couple columns with hours listed, including purported overtime, and then, on the far right, the “TOTAL HOURS” column. SO, as a Sterling tax-paying Schmuck, if you thought the guy running David Favreau Septic Services would be required to itemize the following–property address and name of owner; date and time of arrival on site; tasks/inspections performed; time spent at that location; date and time of departure–you would be WRONG!

Monday night I was rushed and cross-referenced some numbers in December, 2020, outside the scope of my document request, and made a couple other tally errors, and for the next few days WordPress screwed up my Blog font, but now, by my count, here are Favreau’s time sheet low-lights for the period 1 January through 10 April 2021. He was credited with 9 “Total Hours” on New Year’s Day even though he did not claim any work hours that day. Thereafter he claimed 83 work days–12 six (6) day weeks (wink, wink), 2 five (5) day weeks (wink, wink), and Sunday, 3 January (wink, wink). Over the 83 claimed work days on those time sheets he claimed one 13.5 hour day (wink, wink), two 13 hour days (wink, wink), thirty-nine (39) 11 (eleven) hour days from “06:30a to 05:30p” (wink, wink), fourteen (14) ten (10) hour days (wink, wink), four 9 hour days (wink), six 8 hour days (wink), and the other days with various fewer hours claimed. During much of that time the ground was frozen so that no soil percolation tests, etc., could be performed. By the way, during that period Mr. Favreau claimed 207.5 overtime hours (wink, wink).

“APPROVAL HISTORY”

The “Approval History” boxes show that some of these time sheets were “Approved By” Town Treasurer Victoria Smith and the others by Town Administrator Kellie Hebert. Gee, in view of the foregoing, I wonder why the time sheets produced on 22 April had the “Approval History” boxes deleted!

TOWN OF STERLING 2019 ANNUAL REPORT

According to the published 2019 Sterling Annual Report– https://www.sterling-ma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif1266/f/uploads/2019_sterling_annual_report.pdf the latest one available on-line, page 55, the “01510-51110 BOH Inspector Salary” was $101,282. According to the same Report, page 67, “Favreau, David,” “Board of Health,” was paid $63,965.20 in “Gross Wages.” Is the latter figure his overtime??? GEE, I don’t remember Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 149, Sec. 33B ( https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXXI/Chapter149/Section33B) ever being adopted by Town Meeting vote, thereby allowing certain salaried Town employees to claim overtime. Was it, really? The Sterling Town Accountant is not aware that that statute was ever adopted by Town Meeting, either. So, why is Mr. Favreau racking up claimed overtime? Is the Town of Sterling making unauthorized overtime payments to anyone? Why the two distinct figures cited in the 2019 Sterling Annual Report?

BOARD OF HEALTH SECRETARY KATHLEEN NICKERSON

It is reported that the Tax-and-Spend Hacks comprising the Finance Committee, appointed by the Tax-and-Spend Hacks comprising the Select Board, are recommending that BOH part-time secretary Kathleen Nickerson become a full-time salaried employee. If that happens, expect her to start claiming overtime, soon, also!

What we have here in our Town of about 7800 people is what I call “PHONY FIEFDOM-BUILDING AND STAFF PROLIFERATION.” Various self-important Town Board and Committee members lobby to add unnecessary salaried employees to their sections and departments so they can say “Gee, look at me, I’m supervising ‘X’ number of employees…”–even if those employees are sitting around much of the time with their thumbs up their _$$_$ at Sterling taxpayer expense.

14 JUNE ANNUAL TOWN MEETING

SO, for those new Sterling property owners/taxpayers among our reading audience, WELCOME TO THE STERLING TAX-AND-SPEND HACK-O-RAMA! COME OUT TO THE 14 JUNE ANNUAL TOWN MEETING TO PROTECT YOURSELVES.

J.G.