Today, a Superior Court judge ruled that Atlantic County violated its own Pay-to-Play Ordinance when it awarded an $88,000.00 no-bid contract to Ford-Scott & Associates to perform auditing work despite the fact that it had made large political contributions to campaign accounts controlled by Atlantic County Sheriff Frank Balles. The Ordinance prohibits the award of a contract to a business that makes a donation of more than $300 to "the current holder of any elective County office." Freeholder Colin Bell (D-At Large) pointed out the pay-to-play violation before the Freeholder Board approved it and was the only Freeholder to vote against the illegal contract.
