After state Rep. Chris Pringle (R-Mobile) led the charge on passing HB131 this spring, he believes the public will finally get to see how money is wasted in state government.
As NBC 15 reported, Alabama’s Examiners of Public Accounts is in charge of auditing government finances across agencies, departments, offices, counties, towns, boards, commissions and the like. Up until HB131, the examiners’ office did not really have the power to do anything about wasteful spending.
“That’s going to change,” Pringle said.
He explained that, in years past, many audits were simply rubber-stamped – they were compliance based, not performance audits that would expose government entities wasting tax dollars by doing things like buying too many cars or renting too much office space.
“We’re going to shine the light on some expenditures. It’s not going to be pretty. But we’re going to put it all on the table and let the taxpayers see how their money is being spent,” Pringle said.
While Pringle’s years of hard work on this issue paid off with HB131’s passage, some are now turning their attention to the state auditor’s office, which is able to publish taxpayer-funded property that goes missing but cannot do anything beyond that under the law.
“We need to fix that so the auditor can enforce their own audits,” State Auditor Jim Zeigler told NBC 15.
Zeigler will reportedly be going to lawmakers this upcoming state legislative session asking that the auditor’s office be given more power to hold state employees accountable.
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
Don’t miss out! Subscribe today to have Alabama’s leading headlines delivered to your inbox.