Two Oakland County commissioners visited Motorola a week before vote on grant including Motorola funds, WXYZ reports
Board Chair Dave Woodward and Commissioner Penny Luebs visited Motorola Solutions in Chicago on Sept. 10 with the undersheriff, a week before the board approved a grant that included up to $200,000 for Motorola, according to a WXYZ investigation.
By OCJ Staff
Oakland County Board of Commissioners Chair Dave Woodward and Commissioner Penny Luebs traveled to Motorola Solutions' Chicago headquarters with the county's undersheriff a week before the board approved a grant that included money for Motorola, WXYZ-TV (Channel 7) reported Tuesday, Oct. 20.
According to WXYZ, a sheriff's official confirmed that on Sept. 10 Woodward, a Royal Oak Democrat; Luebs, a Clawson Democrat who chairs the board's Public Health and Safety Committee; and the undersheriff flew to Chicago, spent the day at Motorola's headquarters, attended a dinner hosted by Motorola, stayed overnight and flew home the next morning.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Office told the station that its official went on the trip, which it said Woodward organized, to compare Motorola's products in order to get the best equipment for deputies and the best deal for taxpayers. The Sheriff's Office also confirmed that Motorola paid for its official's overnight trip and meals, WXYZ reported.
The station said it had not been able to get a clear answer on who paid the two commissioners' costs. It reported that neither commissioner's expense reports submitted in September showed receipts from the Chicago trip, and that Woodward has not denied that Motorola paid for the trip.
The vote
On Sept. 17, the board approved a $2.9 million Automobile Theft Prevention Authority grant, under which Motorola will receive up to $200,000 for a license plate reader investigative database, according to WXYZ. The station reported that Luebs voted yes and that Commissioner Yolonda Smith Charles, a Southfield Democrat, voted no because of the surveillance technology included in the grant. WXYZ's report did not give the full vote count.
WXYZ reported that Smith Charles confirmed Woodward and Luebs did not disclose the trip before the board meeting. Smith Charles told the station she did not see anything wrong with the travel itself but that making the board aware is "always a good idea." Commissioners Kristen Nelson, a Waterford Democrat, and Charlie Cavell, a Ferndale Democrat, along with several Republican commissioners the station spoke with, said they were not told about the trip before the vote, WXYZ reported.
The station also reported that Flock Safety earlier paid to bring Woodward and three sheriff's officials to its headquarters, a trip other commissioners said was not disclosed to them or the public before an April vote on Flock drones.
The county's Motorola contracts total about $64.7 million, according to WXYZ.
What officials said
Asked why the trip was not disclosed before the vote, Luebs told the station, "We didn't go before the vote," and said she did not remember the date. She said the group was looking at how Motorola does business, that learning how a business works requires meeting with it, and that the trip was not a secret. She also told WXYZ that, as far as she knew, Woodward had paid for her flight, and that she had not asked him.
In a written statement to WXYZ, Woodward said the board must make informed decisions and that the Sheriff's Office is facing aging emergency response equipment, including body cameras, dash cams and emergency radios. He said Motorola has been an important partner in that area for more than 20 years, and added, "We attended a day-long meeting with the undersheriff." The station said he did not answer its specific questions or return calls and text messages.
Brendan Dunleavy, the former auditor general for Wayne County, told WXYZ, "It's the appearance of impropriety," and said commissioners should not be allowed to take vendor-sponsored trips.
WXYZ reported that Macomb County has an ethics policy that does not allow vendor-sponsored travel. A Wayne County Commission spokesman told the station the commission has no formal policy prohibiting such travel but that vendor-paid travel for commissioners or staff is understood to be inappropriate. WXYZ said a Motorola Solutions communications manager hung up when the station called to ask about the trip.
The Oakland County Journal has not independently confirmed the details of the trip.