Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Government Transparency topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee divides over performance audit of State Bar; audit funding tabled after roll-call
Summary
House Bill 65 would commission a legislative performance audit of the State Bar of Montana. The bill drew opposition from the State Bar and divided the committee; a roll-call produced a 10–12 vote and the committee tabled the bill.
Representative Lee Deming opened House Bill 65, which provides for a performance audit of the State Bar of Montana by the Legislative Audit Division. Bruce Spencer, representing the State Bar, objected to the audit's costs and scope, saying the bar is a private nonprofit that already undergoes annual financial audits by an independent accounting firm and does not receive public funding beyond a $7,500 contract to collect the attorney license tax. He said a $202,000 audit would not provide a sufficient return on investment and that much of the State Bar’s activity (regulating the practice of law) is overseen by the Supreme Court.
Legislative Auditor Angus McKeever described the legislative audit division's role as the legislature's audit and accountability arm and explained that performance audits examine operations, policy and management questions distinct from financial-statement audits. Committee members asked whether the audit would fit within the division’s constitutional authority and whether the division had audited similar quasi-public entities; McKeever said authority in this exact scenario is untested and that the audit would raise constitutional questions if pursued.
Several senators argued the Legislative Audit Division is already capacity-constrained and that this audit would divert resources from other priorities. The roll-call vote on a motion to concur produced a recorded 10 yes, 12 no; the chair announced the committee would reverse the vote to table and House Bill 65 was tabled.
