Richmond official says city’s newly-released spending records are still incomplete
VENN
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — A Richmond city councilmember said a subpoena for Mayor Danny Avula is still on the table.
On Thursday, March 26, Mayor Danny Avula released Richmond’s payment registry — or a granular list of city spending — for fiscal year 2025. The lengthy Excel sheet details more than 130,000 transactions amounting to just over $2.9 billion. It includes payment descriptions and where the money came from.
This comes after city councilwoman Kenya Gibson threatened legal action if the city didn't provide these records, as required under city code.
“I've been trying to get this document, or the database, since January," Gibson said. "And again, I mean, it's something that the city routinely publishes every month -- until 2019, and then [it] stopped.”
The city described Avula’s move to publish the payment registry as “part of a broader initiative to address long-standing operational challenges within city government, especially the finance department, and ensure that the city’s commitment to transparency is supported by reliable systems and processes.”
Gibson said while she appreciates Avula releasing this information, she says it's too early to celebrate, as the registry as presented is missing the names of the payees.
“When you look at your monthly credit card statement, the first thing you look at is who got all the money,” Gibson said. “As a city, we've had a lot of discussions about fraudulent card transactions. So the city's residents have a lot of questions about where their money is.”
Avula added that he would consider signing an ordinance reforming these payment registry requirements.
