State auditor finds millions in waste, improper payments, misuse of state resources (Photo: AdobeStock)
On an annual basis, every state across the country is required to file audited financial statements.
Known as the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR), these look to provide a breakdown of all financial statements across state government and business type activities.
While many of the states look to file them within six to seven months, California is one of the states that has seen their reports delay filings for multiple years. Specifically since 2020.
This has resulted in the California State Auditor to create a high risk government agency audit program to find out what is causing this.
To make sure they can find out the core issues, the audit will focus on four major areas:
– State Controllers Office: See whether the controllers office manages the preparation report correctly.
– Department of Finance: Find out whether the finances suitably supports the statewide financial reporting.
– California State Auditors Office: See if their financial audit process is efficient enough. This will be conducted by an outside independent firm.
– Five different departments will be investigated that submitted their reports late or sent inaccurate financial reports.
Why else does it matter?
This is looked at as a credible
Those groups include investors in bond stocks, credit rating agencies, the federal government itself, the legislature and the taxpayer.
This late reporting can have a bad domino effect like reducing fiscal transparency, delays in federal oversight, and even potentially placing billions of federal funds at risk.
