The Toronto Catholic District School Board has hired an accounting firm to audit trustee expenses after a report accused some of spending public funds on personal items.
The board appointed Ernst and Young to verify the results of a report leaked to the media that alleged trustees billed the public purse for thousands of dollars of expenses that weren't all business related.
The report claims that some trustees billed for multiple meals in one day, alcohol and even food and drinks from hotel mini-bars.
Some trustees also gave themselves an annual car allowance of $8,600 and medical and dental benefits, allegedly going against legal advice on the matter.
Trustee expenses at the Catholic board are supposed to be reviewed by senior staff. The policy for Toronto's public school board says all trustee expenses must be reviewed by the chair.
Catholic board chair Catherine LeBlanc-Miller told CTV Toronto on Wednesday that she would support getting an integrity commissioner involved in the process.
"I certainly wouldn't say no," she said. "We can look at what other institutions have in place and follow their best practices."
The Catholic board does not currently employ its own integrity commissioner, a position that exists within both the City of Toronto and the Province of Ontario.
The Greater Toronto Catholic Parent Network has demanded that any trustees found to have misspent public funds should be forced to pay them back.
