In March of this year, internal audit and compliance director Etta Dunning urged that Birmingham City Councilor Bert Miller be investigated regarding a $25,000 expenditure for a concert that never took place. Dunning asked that the U.S. Justice Department and the Jefferson County District Attorney’s office look into the matter. Concern had been raised earlier this year about a lack of accountability for the more than $400,000 the city annually hands out to arts and cultural groups.
Miller is chair of the Parks and Recreation Cultural Arts Committee, which supervises the arts executive committee. The councilor claimed the executive committee approved $25,000 for a concert promoted by Teen Rock International, Inc. But several months ago committee members denied that the $25,000 had been approved, or that Teen Rock had even made a presentation to the committee. Bert Miller nonetheless added the item to the City Council agenda, after which the Council voted for the expenditure 7 to 2, with Councilors Joel Montgomery and Carol Reynolds voting against it.
|
||||||
A report prepared by Dunning’s office said the $25,000 should be paid back to the city by Miller and two individuals affiliated with Teen Rock. The report also stated that an accompanying workshop was never conducted.
Birmingham Mayor Bernard Kincaid said he will ask the Alabama Ethics Commission to investigate Miller.
On Tuesday, July 19, Miller held an impromptu press conference outside his office at City Hall. “I’ve done no wrongdoing,” said Miller. “The Mayor and city attorney had different opinions. They had a prosecutor who’s a friend, and I think it’s a political witch hunt.” When asked about his absence from recent council meetings, the councilor grew angry. “I’ve been ill. I stated in the record, I’ve been in Brookwood Hospital; I almost lost my life! Do they have any consideration for that? I was sick! I had a heart virus! Make sure that’s on TV, OK? I was told by my heart doctor not to come [to council meetings]!
Regarding any awareness on his part about impropriety by Teen Rock, Miller again grew angry and said, “Once it leaves the City Council and is voted on by the full Council, I’m through with it. Let’s go on to the next item!” Miller added, “The money was approved by the full Council, and that’s where the buck stops . . . Once it leaves the City Council’s dais, and was approved by the Council, I’m through with it . . . I don’t know what happened after that.”
|
||||||||||
Miller announced last year that he was bankrupt. In recent years, he has claimed to have given away thousands of dollars to help poor residents pay bills. On some occasions, he drew names from a bowl in his council office to decide who would receive the money. During public appearances, Miller sometimes handed out fistfuls of cash to screaming women as if he were a game show host. Newspaper headlines often touted Miller as the “money man.” &
Â