Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Internal Audit Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
State internal audit division seeks to retain ARPA-funded audit manager; removes auditor request amid vacancies
Summary
The Division of Internal Audits told joint budget committees it will remove a requested auditor position via amendment because of retirement and hiring difficulty, and seeks to retain one ARPA-funded audit manager position by converting funding to general fund starting July 1, 2025.
Craig Stephenson, administrator of the Division of Internal Audits, told the joint Assembly and Senate committees that the division will submit budget amendments to remove a requested auditor position because of retirement and hiring challenges and to convert funding for an ARPA-funded audit manager position to general fund beginning July 1, 2025.
Stephenson said the originally requested auditor 3 position (decision unit E302) will be removed via budget amendment because the division is losing an auditor to retirement and has had trouble filling vacancies. He said part of the workload for that position will be covered by the audit manager position that the division is requesting to continue. "That position is going to take on a little bit more responsibility," Stephenson said, adding that some workload reductions are expected if legislation creating an Office of the Inspector General (Assembly Bill 33) passes and transfers the fraud, waste and abuse hotline away from the division.
Stephenson described another forthcoming amendment removing ARPA funding for teammate audit software (decision unit E331) because those expenses can be paid with ARPA and an amendment will correct the request. He also said E499 and E599 will sunset ARPA funding and the division requests funding beginning July 1, 2025, to retain a currently filled classified position previously funded with ARPA.
The division reported performance measures: in fiscal year 2024 it returned $90 in identified benefits to the state for every dollar spent on internal audit and reported nearly 95% of internal audit recommendations were implemented in FY24. Committee members asked how the division will manage workload if vacancies persist; Stephenson said the audit manager will assume additional duties and remaining work will be redistributed.
There were no committee votes on the internal audit requests at the meeting; Stephenson said he would submit the technical amendments to correct decision units.
