TAFT, Calif. -- The Kern County Grand Jury has returned a harsh report against city manager Bob Gorson as well as the city council over a pay raise dispute, thus siding with the city attorney's prior opinion on the matter and dismissing the findings of an independent attorney hired last year by the council.

The grand jury recommended the City Council take action to hold Gorson accountable for his actions, which could happen as soon as next week during a public session of the council.

Gorson authorized seven pay raises to six city management staff between July 2008 and April 2009, including the chief of police and city clerk, without the approval of the Taft city council, the report says.

Some of those raises were retroactive, which could result in a gift of public funds, the report states.

That was the general opinion drafted by Taft city attorney Kathy Gibson in August 2009, but in September, the city council hired Michael Jenkins, an independent attorney who argued the pay raises were legal.

The grand jury also found that Taft's city council "has spent too much time trying to circumvent the City Attorney's opinions," the report states.

It recommends the City Council to investigate whether a gift of public funds occurred.

Also included in the report were findings on Gorson's private exchange of $200,000 with City Councilman Cliff Thompson in 2007 on what became a failed real estate venture in Ford City. Both Gorson and Thompson should have disclosed the monetary exchange in a Form 700 (Statement of Economic Interests) in a timely manner, the report says. Both Gorson and Thompson have since submitted amended forms to the state.

The exchange created a perceived conflict of interest, in which Thompson should have recused himself on matters regarding Gorson's performance, and Gorson should have notified the council, but neither complied, the report says.

To view the report in its entirety, Click Here.