The 2019-2020 Lodi School Budget appropriated $100,000
for legal services (more than what was spent for the entire 2018-2019 school
year).
The
Giacobbe/Lagana law firm blew through that $100,000 in record amount of
time. Since then, the Lodi BOE has been
draining resources designated for other educational purposes to further enrich these
dishonest and unethical attorneys.
The bills were outrageous from day one. The bills were unnecessary from day one. The firm lied during its presentation. The board began paying the firm’s bills without
the board ever negotiating a contract or approving a contract with the
firm. I began calling out Giacobbe's abuses last summer and I predicted exactly how they would go over budget in no time. I voted NO on every bill submitted by the firm and recommended the firm be removed immediately for dishonesty.
The Lodi BOE never informed the public of going over
budget. It never informed the public of
any running totals or where the money was coming from to pay the firm.
At the board's last meeting where an agenda was never posted, it has been reported that Kerry Mastrofilipo, Jeff Telep, Donald Scorzetti, Marc Schrieks, Nancy Cardone, Sharon Salvacion, and Natalie Delgado voted to keep the firm for the upcoming school year. They did so without addressing the firm's outrageous billing at a time that the board will likely have to make cuts in other areas (being it recklessly ignored the state's declining revenues when it approved its 2020-2021 budget).
The following OPRA request was submitted on June 28,
2020.
Other
districts need to start paying attention to what “Cleary Giacobbe” is billing
to their districts and for what. This
politician run firm is a total rip off.
Campaign contributions and listing a state senator as a partner in the
firm is the wrong way to secure public contracts.
