Audit flags record-keeping and testing gaps at Michigan Secretary of State branches; department points to new feedback tools and safeguards

The Michigan Office of the Auditor General told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on General Government that a review of the Department of State’s branch operations found multiple weaknesses in record-keeping, testing-area oversight and training documentation, while the department described steps it has taken and plans to implement to address the findings.

The auditors said they concluded the Bureau of Operations "provided sufficient branch office customer services" but identified reportable conditions in four areas, including inconsistent collection of wait-time data and customer feedback, incomplete supporting documentation for some Real ID and enhanced ID transactions, inadequate monitoring of test-taking areas, and missing training records. Audit manager Robert Lock and audit supervisor Katie Snyder presented the report and its methodology — including site visits and a 60-transaction sample — to the committee.

The audit notes that auditors reviewed a sample of 13 branch office visits and 60 transactions drawn from state transaction data. On customer feedback, auditors found 693 comments between Oct. 1, 2022 and May 31, 2024 — "less than one half of 1% of the 7,000,000 customers served for the same time…