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Jo Clifton is the Politics Editor for the Austin Monitor.
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Buchman placed on probation
Tuesday, January 31, 2017 by Jo Clifton
Following an investigation by the Office of the City Auditor’s Integrity Unit, Austin Water has notified Kevin Buchman, the manager of utility marketing services, that he is being suspended for five working days without pay and will be on disciplinary probation for the next 12 months. Buchman’s behavior was part of an investigation that showed he inappropriately accepted a favor from Jason Hill, program manager for Austin Water’s Public Information & Marketing Office. According to a memo to Buchman, his behavior violated city standards of conduct and personnel procedure. Hill has resigned as the result of another investigation. The initial investigation also found that Buchman misused his city email account and computer. The bigger problem came with Buchman’s apparent failure to appropriately oversee spending in the public information office. “You failed to maintain adequate oversight over the advertising and to determine how long the specific spending should occur,” according to the memo. Buchman, who has been with the city for many years, can appeal this disciplinary action.
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