Atlanta Council Members Call For More Accountability At Job-Training Agency
Some Atlanta City Council members are calling for more accountability at the city’s workforce development agency. It comes after widespread claims of waste and abuse of federal job-training dollars.
The Atlanta Workforce Development Agency operates as a bureau of the mayor’s office, but Councilwoman Mary Norwood says the city’s legislative body needs to get more involved.
“At this stage it needs to be drastic action by Council and I will certainly support some type of accountability by Council,” said Norwood.
Councilman Michael Julian Bond says appointment power on the agency’s board may be in order.
“We can assign members of the Council to sit on that board and report to the body so we’re more plugged into what is actually going on in policy-making, hiring, the management of the agency,” said Bond.
This weekend, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported the agency may have wasted hundreds of thousands of federal dollars aimed at training low-skilled workers and the unemployed.
The U.S. Labor Department is investigating the alleged waste.
In a written statement, Mayor Kasim Reed acknowledged the need for reform. He cited a recent city audit of the agency and said a private consulting firm has been hired to recommend changes.
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