Kirkwood Council Uses Independent Counsel to Audit Electric Deficit

Kirkwood City Council Moves to Insulate Electric Utility Audit

Kirkwood’s elected leaders are taking a definitive step to wall off the upcoming audit of Kirkwood Electric from the influence of those who held office during last year’s $15.6 million budget deficit. The city council voted to ensure that the forensic investigation, which will scrutinize five years of financial records at the city-owned utility, remains entirely independent of the leadership team present when the overspending occurred.

The Kirkwood City Council is seeking bids for an outside forensic audit of its electric department. The goal: to determine if criminal wrongdoing played any role in the Electric Department’s $15.6 million deficit and what corrective actions are needed.https://t.co/OezBdMRv3F

— https://x.com/stlpublicradio/status/2075725572039156094

As reported by the Webster-Kirkwood Times, the move effectively places four senior officials on the sidelines during the review process: Mayor Liz Gibbons and Council Members Gina Jaksetic, Paul Schaefer, and Mark McLean. While McLean eventually joined his colleagues in voting to support the segregation of the audit reporting team, the mayor and the other two council members opposed the measure, arguing that the full council could maintain sufficient transparency without the procedural barrier.

Establishing an Independent Audit Pipeline

The council has selected the Chicago-based firm Plante Moran to lead the forensic audit, which is scheduled to begin in January and is expected to span six months. To prevent any perception of bias, the findings will not be routed through the city’s longtime legal representatives at the St. Louis-based firm Lewis Rice. Instead, the auditors will transmit their data directly to an outside legal team at Ellinger Bell, based in Jefferson City.

Council Members Justin Arnold, Shelia Burkett, and Deb Lavender—all elected in April 2026—will serve as the primary liaisons for this outside counsel. They were originally tapped to recommend an audit firm due to their lack of involvement in the 2025 fiscal decisions that led to the utility’s financial crisis.

We really felt it is important to separate all the findings from anyone who’d been involved, even on council.

Council Member Shelia Burkett noted during a work session on Thursday, Nov. 5. The objective, according to Council Member Arnold, is to ensure that the final report is viewed by Kirkwood residents as a neutral assessment, free from the influence of staff or leadership who were active when the deficit was first discovered in late summer of 2025.

The Stakes of the Utility Deficit

The financial shortfall at Kirkwood Electric has already resulted in significant personnel changes. Following the discovery of the $15.6 million deficit, the city terminated the employment contracts of former Kirkwood Electric Director Mark Petty and the former Chief Administrative Officer.

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For the residents of Kirkwood, the audit represents more than just a reconciliation of accounts; it is a test of civic trust. By creating a reporting structure that bypasses the city’s established legal counsel and the council members who served during the period of overspending, the newer council members are attempting to insulate the investigative process from institutional inertia. The findings, once reviewed by the appointed trio, will be relayed back to the full council for final consideration.

The split vote underscores the ongoing tension within local government as it navigates the fallout from the 2025 financial disclosures. While the audit proceeds, the city remains in a period of transition, with the upcoming report serving as the primary metric for how the utility will address its recent fiscal history and governance standards moving forward.

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