Two Prince George’s council members call for audit of organizations tied to their colleagues

Prince George’s County Council members Jolene Ivey and Sydney Harrison on Monday called for an independent audit of two organizations to which their council colleagues have steered millions in grant funding.

They’re seeking an audit of Community On The Frontline, run by Janna Parker, a close friend of Chair Krystal Oriadha and the godmother of Oriadha’s son; and Joan’s House, an Oxon Hill-based nonprofit through which council member Edward Burroughs has established programs connecting young people to educational and professional development opportunities.

Burroughs said he has organized and attended several out-of-state trips, including to Puerto Rico, for kids involved with Joan’s House.

“We can’t say that we’re seeing things that are illegal. But, at minimum, they seem to be unethical,” Ivey said during a press conference Monday in front of the county administration building in Largo.

Oriadha said Monday that she welcomes an audit of the council’s grant programs. She added that she recently instituted a policy requiring audits every two years for grants over $150,000, and she requested that Community On The Frontline be audited first.

“This reflects my longstanding belief that public funding must come with meaningful oversight,” she said in a statement.

Burroughs said that he welcomes “a full and transparent review of the facts.

“I am confident in the work that has been done,” he added, “and believe an independent review will help separate the facts from the political rhetoric surrounding the issue.”

Ivey’s and Harrison’s demands follow a recent NBC4 Washington report stating that the council has awarded millions to Community On The Frontline this year, and also a series of social media posts Oriadha made defending the grant awards.

The advocacy group Citizens for Accountability in Governance has also been promoting a letter campaign calling for the council to request an independent audit and investigation of its grant funding.

The Banner first reported in June that Oriadha and Burroughs had repeatedly pushed to award millions of dollars to their preferred organizations, specifically by diverting money from park and recreation funds through an established funding mechanism called “project charges.”

The council voted earlier this year to transfer more than $39 million in project charges, including more than $8 million total for Community On The Frontline and Joan’s House.

A circuit court judge has temporarily blocked the transfer and is expected to rule next month on whether it violates state and local law.

Ivey and Harrison both said they’ve been unable to get answers from their colleagues about exactly how much money the two organizations have received in recent years.

They also questioned whether internal County Council dynamics are making the grant-funding process less transparent.

Ivey said council employees are scared to raise concerns for fear of retaliation.

“A lot of people are afraid to do anything that might upset the chair, especially this chair, because that would put them at risk of losing their jobs,” she said.

In her statement to The Banner, Oriadha did not address Ivey’s claim that council staff feared reprisal.

Harrison also called for the Maryland State Prosecutor to investigate the council’s grant funding.

“I have serious consternation right now about the way the grant process is moving forward. It seems to be run entirely by the chair of the council,” Harrison said.

Responding to the council members’ calls for an audit, Oriadha said the council will develop a centralized portal where residents can find information about grant recipients, funding amounts and explanations for how organizations spend the money they receive.

She said part of her goal is to prevent people from having to submit formal requests “to find basic funding details.”

In her recent social media posts, Oriadha said she welcomed scrutiny and questioning of the council’s grant programs.

”You have to challenge elected officials and make sure that they can verify whatever [it] is they’re saying," she said.

Oriadha said her friendship with Parker, who leads Community On The Frontline, stems from years of working together as community advocates and in the nonprofit sector.

She said she selected Community On The Frontline to be an “anchor organization” receiving council funding because of its structure.

The organization has a fiscal sponsor, the Edward Charles Foundation, which Oriadha said provides an added layer of oversight.

Parker could not be reached for comment.

A spokesperson for the Edward Charles Foundation, which is based in Beverly Hills, California, could not be reached for comment.

In an emailed statement, Joan’s House wrote that it welcomes “any fair, independent review of our use of public funds.”

It added: “We are proud of the meaningful results our programs have delivered.”

Harrison and Ivey have proposed a bill creating an independent Office of the Inspector General, which they’ve said would improve transparency.

They introduced the bill in September, but one of the council’s committees declined to advance it.

Oriadha said in a statement last week that council members have expressed concerns about potential overlap between a new inspector general and the county’s Office of Audits and Investigations and the Office of Ethics and Accountability.

“I support strong, independent oversight and accountability and believe any changes to the County’s oversight structure should clearly define each office’s role and follow the appropriate legal process,” Oriadha said in her statement.