Richmond, Virginia, Mayor Danny Avula announced the city’s procurement card program, also known as the p-card program, will be paused and called for a “reset” after accusations of abuse, 6 News Richmond reported.
In a statement, Avula, the city’s first immigrant and Indian mayor, said the number of city p-cards will be reduced by more than 80%, from 320 to approximately 60, by May 9. As the p-cards are known as credit cards for staff to make smaller and efficient purchases, the mayor said the next few months will be used to reset and review after reports revealed areas of program weakness, including examples of alleged waste, fraud, and abuse. “P-cards are a best practice, but Richmond’s p-card program needs a reset. So, today, I’m turning off the vast majority of p-cards and placing new purchasing restrictions on the remaining cards,” Avula said.
“We’ll take the next few months to reassess, retool, and reboot the program in an effective way that really serves Richmonders.”
Results from a 2024 investigation by a Richmond government watchdog agency highlighted that the city’s then-General Registrar and his department were cited with 25 counts of waste, fraud, and abuse. It also found that nearly $500,000 in public funds was wasted through purchases that violated city policies.
A Richmond spokesperson revealed that the only allowed purchases should be those where public health, safety, and critical services would be disrupted if not allowed, or where no other payment methods exist.
“The reset will last at least 60 to 90 days during which the Department of Procurement Services (DPS) will redesign and then relaunch the p-card program,” the statement continued.
City leaders, including 4th District Councilmember Sarah Abubaker, celebrated Avula’s actions, but hope that’s not where it ends. “Here we are sort of in reaction to something happening as opposed to proactively thinking through what accountability and transparency look like,” she said, according to 12 On Your Side.
“There’s no accountability. If we’re not punishing people for fraudulent use of p-cards, and we’re not giving proper training or punishing the people who actually do the oversight of the p-card system and approve these, then it’s just sort of a reset of the same system.”
The city’s Department of Procurement Services, under the leadership of Rene Almaraz, hired the Institute for Public Procurement to assess the program and provide a report. Almarez said the team is “absolutely committed to creating the most efficient procurement p-card program possible.”
Other reset changes include the prohibition of Amazon purchases, except mission-critical food items or citizen-supporting programs such as summer food programs or after-school programs. Department directors will also no longer issue p-cards, allowing them to focus on approving purchases.
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