Travel, Dining, And Town VISA Card Use Calls For Greater Oversight In North Carolina’s Seventh-Largest Municipality

RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina Office of the State Auditor (OSA) has released an investigative report identifying several concerns with the Town of Cary’s spending practices, Town VISA card use, and financial oversight.

Investigators identified procedural and policy violations by Town officials regarding the expense of public funds. The report also identifies tens of thousands of dollars in purchases that lacked clear government business purpose or appeared excessive, including high-cost meals, alcohol purchases, hotel cancellation and no-show charges, travel expenses, council-related purchases, and spending tied to retreats and promotional activities.

Contributing to these questionable decisions was the abundance of issued Town VISA cards. OSA found that more than 62% of Town employees were given a Town VISA card, far above the average of 16% in the nine other most populous municipalities in North Carolina. The Town had a total of 828 Town VISA cards. From January 2024 through December 2025, employees made more than 60,000 government credit card transactions totaling $24.2 million.

“The spending exposed in the Town of Cary must be addressed with greater oversight and accountability,” said State Auditor Dave Boliek. “Public dollars being thrown around carelessly while taxes are being raised only creates distrust in government. This report brings spending to light and shows a true accounting of where tax dollars go in Cary. The public has a right to be frustrated, and hopefully this will result in much-needed financial restraint and discipline in the future.”

In its examination of spending, investigators identified purchases including $37,301 for a councilmember’s graduate tuition before it was later reimbursed, $65,653 for a ghostwriter to write a book about former Town Manager Sean Stegall, and more than $1 million spent by Former Town Manager Stegall on property without full Town Council review. Over $100,000 in purchases were missing receipts or lacked itemized receipts. Other notable purchases include:

• A dinner purchased for two in Atlanta, including two 20-oz ribeye steaks that were $120 each and a $48 glass of wine.
• $4,164 for dinner for the Town Council and staff at Rey’s Restaurant, a fine-dining steakhouse in Raleigh.
• A $3,419 penthouse stay for former Town Manager Stegall.
• $733 for an executive van to transport Town employees 12 miles to attend the Wake County Mayor’s Association Holiday Dinner.
• $1,600 spent on 10 pairs of Ray-Ban sunglasses for Town councilmembers.
• Councilmembers were given a car allowance of $9,626 each year, or $802 a month.
• The Town spent $121,314 on video production for its 2024 retreat in Wilmington. This included production costs for filming a performance at the retreat and a documentary about how the performance came to be.

OSA also noted the Town’s fund balance fell below its minimum policy threshold in recent fiscal years, while spending outpaced revenue and property taxes increased. The report recommends stronger Town VISA card controls, improved financial reporting, clearer reimbursement policies, council approval thresholds for major purchases, and better transparency and oversight. In the interest of transparency and accountability, investigators included a full appendix detailing all Town staff purchasing card transactions, as well as the response from the Town to the report.

In order to preserve the integrity of any potential criminal investigation, OSA has refrained from discussing the specifics of the purchases referred to the Wake County District Attorney and the State Bureau of Investigation, other than those contained within the allegations received.