The Geauga County Commissioners’ Dec. 9 meeting devolved into personal insults and heated exchanges after a financial report raised questions about funding for the county’s Automatic Data Processing board.
The Geauga County Commissioners’ Dec. 9 meeting devolved into personal insults and heated exchanges after a financial report raised questions about funding for the county’s Automatic Data Processing board.
The confrontation stemmed from a report by Finance Manager Adrian Gorton and quickly escalated into a lengthy argument between Commissioner Ralph Spidalieri and Geauga County Auditor Chuck Walder.
The discussion began when Spidalieri asked Gorton about a potential $132,000 transfer from the Geauga County Sheriff’s Office, which Spidalieri said had previously been discussed.
The GCSO Transfer
Gorton said he noticed the ADP board appeared short of funds to cover payroll and explored transferring money from the sheriff’s office.
However, when he contacted the Geauga County Auditor’s Office about the possibility, staff informed him they were already planning an internal transfer, Walder and Spidalieri both confirmed Dec. 12.
“The (GCSO) transfer was placed on the financials that is done in the auditor’s office and was visible on Friday afternoon, but on Monday morning, it was gone with no explanation to Adrian on where the money was coming from,” Spidalieri said.
Walder said the auditor’s office never requested a transfer from the sheriff’s office and noted ADP payroll is being handled differently this year.
Typically, ADP bills entities throughout the year, but this year, they waited to complete true-ups in December, Walder said, referring to making adjustments to financial statements to reflect the difference between the initial budgeted amount and the actual need.
“I appreciated Adrian reaching out to (Chief Operations Officer Pam McMahan) as he recognized the percentage was high of consumption in ADP, but Pam and I had not yet discussed the action plan, nor did Pam request that money be transferred. So, we have adequate funds to do it. This week is covered. Next week, we’re using some GIS (geographic information systems) money and we’re still working out those details,” Walder said, calling the matter “much ado about nothing.”
Spidalieri disagreed.
“If we would have had this shortage, we would not have been able to process payroll in the county for all employees,” he said.
Walder said he viewed Spidalieri’s concern as disingenuous, adding he has always made payroll during his tenure as auditor.
Spidalieri accused Walder of running a “shell game” and said Walder had exceeded ADP’s salary budget.
Walder denied the claim, saying the entities that use ADP’s services pay its salaries and the salary cap had not been exceeded. He added APD had not yet been reimbursed for work related to relocating the Geauga County Board of Elections.
“There’s so many inconsistencies,” Spidalieri replied. “Your overtime this year is close to $60,000. You’ve got a director. None of our directors in this county make overtime, but your director is probably close to $12,000 in (earnings.)”
Walder responded that ADP’s director is the lowest-paid director in the county, which Spidalieri disputed.
The auditor also said Spidalieri’s concerns should have been raised during budget hearings.
Spidalieri replied Walder throws temper tantrums during hearings when questioned.
Spidalieri also pointed to the proposed 2026 tax budget, which allocates $3.3 million to ADP, compared with $1.2 million in 2021.
The argument then shifted to the county’s 2023 reappraisal. Walder said he was legally required to conduct the reappraisal and traveled to Columbus multiple times to argue against it.
Spidalieri said the reappraisal placed an undue burden on residents, particularly seniors.
“(Seniors) can’t afford to pay these taxes and then we’re looking at these budget numbers that are just absolutely off the charts paying overtime and paying this, paying that,” Spidalieri said, adding that while fair wages are necessary, ADP’s spending is unreasonable.
Regarding the sheriff’s office transfer, Gorton said he would not have attempted it without positive input from Walder’s staff and that two employees in the auditor’s office encouraged him to explore the option before it was denied.
Gorton declined to name the individuals.
The issue resurfaced later in the meeting during consideration of the 2026 permanent appropriations.
“My position is to move to approve everything on the budget, but I cannot approve the ADP board budget at the request of $3,306,286,” Spidalieri said, adding he still had unanswered questions.
Commissioner Carolyn Brakey pushed back.
“I’m not saying you don’t have valid points, commissioner, but this just feels to me a little late in the game,” she said, questioning why the concerns had not been flagged earlier in the budget process.
The budget passed unamended on a 2-1 vote, with Spidalieri casting the sole no vote.
ADP Deputy Chief Administrator Frank Antenucci said Dec. 12 that defunding ADP would have serious consequences.
“Defunding ADP for 2026 was a reckless and profoundly uninformed suggestion, as it would have immediately collapsed countywide technology, cybersecurity and records operations, leaving every department unable to function and exposing the county to massive legal, financial and public-safety risks,” he said. “No responsible official could advance such an idea without either fundamentally misunderstanding how government operates or disregarding the catastrophic consequences for Geauga County and its taxpayers.”
ADP Responds
Several officials defended APD later that day during a separate meeting.
Geauga County Prosecutor Jim Flaiz said elected officials who vote for the ADP budget should publicly defend it when employees are attacked.
Comparing IT staff across county departments, Flaiz said court IT has three technicians for 60 users at an hourly rate of $42.59, the sheriff’s office has three technicians for 120 users at $39.19 per hour and ADP has 17 technicians supporting 1,100 users with an average hourly rate of $31.88.
It is not true that ADP has exorbitant salaries, Flaiz said, adding Antenucci has worked multiple weekends. He noted prosecutors who worked weekends for Saturday court sessions received double comp time.
Several county employees earn more than Antenucci, but have not faced similar scrutiny, Flaiz said.
Walder apologized to ADP employees, saying publicly beating them up could drive staff away.
Geauga County Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand was reluctant to defend ADP salaries without knowing what they were, but welcomed more information to back them up, if needed.
He said he initially viewed the exchange as an attack on Walder rather than on ADP employees.
Antenucci said the argument had negatively affected morale within ADP.
Flaiz said he would like to review ADP salaries compared with IT workers in the county and surrounding counties early next year, a proposal Antenucci supported.
While internal salary reviews have been conducted, Antenucci said they have not included regional comparisons.
In a Dec. 16 follow-up, Spidalieri reiterated his earlier statement of Walder taking an offensive position and not wanting to be asked questions.
No other elected official has given raises like he has, he said, adding former Commissioner Tim Lennon had reached out to ADP boards in surrounding counties and that Geauga is competitively priced.
There was no public beating on staff, he said, adding “…drama drama drama, let’s get to the bottom line and have some accountable spending.”
After the Meetings
Following the meetings, Spidalieri provided the Geauga County Maple Leaf with documents he referenced during the debate.
ADP issued raises to nine employees, hired two additional employees beyond what was budgeted and paid Antenucci overtime, he said.
The documents included an overtime analysis report and a list of county directors’ hourly rates, which placed Antenucci alongside the director of probation in a separate column.
Walder said Dec. 15 that the data was misleading.
“Frank is not a director. He is my number two and should be compared accordingly. Also, the data conveniently leaves off people like Kim Laurie, Don Rice, Laura LaChapelle, Amy Bevan, Mark Jimison, Adam Litke, Tom Rowan, etc,” he said, calling it a “selective comparison.”
Antenucci and Flaiz later provided a separate salary spreadsheet placing Antenucci below more employees in earnings than Spidalieri’s.
Spidalieri responded that many employees listed in the spreadsheet are no longer employed, have pay rates set by elected officials or hold positions with significant responsibility and long tenure.
Antenucci said salary increases were partially driven by the 2024 transfer of the county Archives and Records department, which brought five employees into ADP. Following the transfer, ADP adjusted salaries to align with county standards and stabilize the department.
Antenucci added that ADP has historically been underfunded and required adjustments to remain competitive, particularly given rising cybersecurity demands, which commissioners approved.
Despite increases, he said ADP employees still earn less than counterparts in the sheriff’s office and courts, contributing to staff turnover.
“Lastly, it was deeply inappropriate for any elected official to publicly suggest defunding an entire agency of more than twenty employees — people with families, mortgages, childcare responsibilities and livelihoods — especially during the holiday season. Such statements create profound and unnecessary fear for workers who dedicate their careers to serving this county and no responsible leader should speak so casually about eliminating the very jobs that sustain these families,” Antenucci said, calling the comments “callous and cruel.”
