Council approves amended audit plan adding gift-card review, narrows lookback to four years

The Wicomico County Council unanimously approved Resolution 51-2025 amending the county's annual internal audit plan for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, to add a gift-card review and remove audit projects the internal auditor will not complete this year.

Anjali Chatel, the county internal auditor, told the council the plan adds a gift-card review because the purchase-card audit disclosed gift-card purchases and a council member requested a closer look. She said the review would help the council decide later whether to adopt new rules governing gift cards.

Councilman Holloway successfully moved two amendments during consideration. The first amended the draft to limit the review's lookback period to four years rather than the 5-to-10-year range originally proposed. The second amendment directed the audit to include information on who received gift cards. The council debated whether names of county employees should be published; some members urged transparency because public funds are involved, while others asked the auditor to consult the county attorney about what must be redacted under law.

Chatel said the gift-card review is informational rather than a formal compliance audit that would issue findings. She also said she removed projects she has not started this year so the amended plan can be completed by the end of the fiscal year. After the amendments, the council voted to approve Resolution 51-2025 as amended.

Council members and the internal auditor discussed balancing transparency with legal obligations on personnel information and agreed to consult the county attorney about appropriate redactions before publishing sensitive details.