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Legislative Audit Committee votes on three audit requests: CEO fails, DOLA and CBI audits advance
Summary
The committee declined an audit of the Colorado Energy Office but approved audits of Department of Local Affairs oversight of metropolitan districts and an amended CBI forensic services review focused on backlog and turnaround time.
At its May 27 hearing the Legislative Audit Committee considered several audit requests and took three recorded votes that determined which reviews will proceed.
A motion to authorize an audit of the Colorado Energy Office (scope: program selection and management, staff and fiscal allocations, and accounting of funds, including funds housed outside the state) failed on a roll call (4 yes, 3 no, 1 excused). Those voting no cited existing JBC oversight, CEO's routine audits and the office's nascent federal program activity as reasons to delay a large-scale audit.
The committee next approved a scoping memo and motion to audit the Department of Local Affairs' oversight of metropolitan districts. The DOLA review will examine DOLA's implementation of oversight responsibilities, assistance to districts and local governments, and examples from other states to inform possible improvements to governance, transparency and responsiveness. The motion passed unanimously by roll call.
Finally, the committee approved an amended audit scope for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation's Forensic Services Section. OSA staff proposed narrowing an earlier scope to avoid creating evidence that could affect an ongoing criminal prosecution concerning a former CBI employee. The committee approved a scope that focuses on CBI's backlog and turnaround time for sexual-assault kits and DNA cases, best practices for timelier testing, and laboratory management practices rather than re-examining the specific cases tied to the prosecution.
Committee members emphasized the need to avoid interfering with active criminal proceedings while ensuring legislative oversight of lab backlogs and victim-centered timeliness. OSA said it had consulted with the relevant district attorney and the Attorney General's Office when adjusting the scope.
The committee recorded roll-call votes on the CEO and DOLA items and a unanimous vote (with one excused) on the amended CBI scope. OSA will proceed with the approved audits under the adjusted scopes and report back to the committee as work progresses.
