Mayor Elorza calls for audit of Board of Licenses

By Kirsten Glavin

kglavin@abc6.com

@kirstenglavin

PROVIDENCE, RI –  In an effort to streamline business in Providence, Mayor Jorge Elorza has stated he is hiring an outside auditor to evaluate the often criticized Board of Licenses.

"What this audit is about, is taking the opportunity to improve the process and the department even more," the Mayor told ABC6 News.

Elorza is now taking action after the city council released a report in September, which criticized how the board was run and managed.

"What it comes down to is from the perspective of small businesses and anyone using the licensing office, that the system is as streamlined and as easy as possible," Elorza said.

But Johanna Harris, a board member for 3 years, told ABC6 on "In the Arena" that she is not sold on the idea. She criticized the mayor, saying he has stopped her from trying to improve some of the issues, ranging form policy, to decision-making.
 
"I think that he (Elorza) does not want to institute changes that would clean up the system and reform the system.  It’s too easy to do it, and I’ve started down that path and he stopped me," Harris said.
 
The Mayor has nominated attorney Dylan Conley to replace Harris, who has been openly critical of the board.  But she says she’s been trying to set things straight.

"The first thing I tried to do was a very basic thing, which is to make sure the members of the board had the right documents and records so when they made decisions, they were fact based and evidence based."

But according to Mayor Elorza, fact and evidence-based decisions are not something she has personally made, as a member.

"I violently disagree with many statements that she has made, and she has made a number of statements that play very loose with the facts," said Elorza.