The Atlanta transit agency says a clerical mistake generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in unearned overtime that has not been returned.
ATLANTA, GA — MARTA has filed a civil lawsuit seeking to recover about $620,000 from a former station cleaner after the transit agency said a clerical error resulted in the worker receiving overtime pay that was never earned.
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority said the payment was made in April and was not flagged until July. The agency said it tried to work with the employee to recover the money without going to court, but the funds have not been returned. MARTA has now turned to a civil lawsuit in an effort to recoup the money.
The size of the payment has drawn attention to MARTA’s payroll controls and how such a large amount could be issued without being caught sooner. MARTA has described the payment as the result of a clerical error but has not publicly provided a detailed account of how the mistake occurred or why it was not identified until months after the paycheck was issued.
MARTA has not publicly identified the former cleaner. The agency said the worker who received the money and the employee involved in the clerical error are no longer employed by MARTA. The agency has not disclosed additional details about their departures.
“We worked with the employee in an effort to recover those funds and hoped to resolve the matter without legal action,” a MARTA spokesperson said in a statement reported by CBS Atlanta. “Unfortunately, the employee has yet to return the funds to MARTA.”
MARTA told Atlanta News First that the approximately $620,000 represented overtime the station cleaner did not earn. The agency said it hopes to resolve the dispute quickly. The lawsuit is a civil effort to recover the money, and reports about the case have not established that the former employee has been charged with a crime.
Atlanta employment attorney Charles Bridgers told Atlanta News First that recovering the money could remain difficult even if MARTA obtains a judgment. A judgment can establish that money is owed, but collection can require additional efforts to locate and recover funds or other assets. Bridgers also discussed the possibility of criminal liability under Georgia law, but authorities have not publicly announced criminal charges in connection with the payment.
The payroll mistake comes as MARTA faces broader scrutiny over its finances. In August, the agency agreed to pay the city of Atlanta $52 million to resolve a long-running dispute involving the More MARTA sales tax program. City auditors had argued that MARTA owed about $70 million over enhanced bus service costs, while MARTA and its auditor had maintained that a much smaller amount was due. The settlement ended that financial dispute without adopting either side’s original figure.
The $620,000 payroll issue is separate from that settlement, but it raises a new question about the agency’s internal financial controls. MARTA said it is retraining employees and strengthening its processes in response to the mistake. The agency has not publicly explained which specific payroll controls failed or what changes have been made beyond those measures.
MARTA board member Valencia Williamson declined to discuss details of the case with WSB-TV but said the public should understand that the agency’s leadership is handling the matter appropriately. The transit authority has said its immediate objective is to recover the money while taking steps designed to prevent a similar payroll error.
As of late September, MARTA said the money had not been returned and its civil case was moving forward. The agency has not publicly disclosed where the funds are now, and key details about how the payment cleared the payroll process remain unanswered.
Author note: Last updated September 29, 2026.