Columbus – Updated financial data for Fayette County shows the entity is not in high fiscal stress. The recently-released Financial Health Indicators tool identified Fayette as one of 16 cities and/or counties that had the characteristics of highly stressed entities. 

However, the financial data on file with the Auditor of State’s office that was used to calculate the Financial Health Indicators (FHIs) did not agree to the financial statements of the county. When the information was updated and the recalculations were made, the number of “critical” and “cautionary” indicators fell from six to four. Entities that use a cash or modified cash basis system of accounting, such as Fayette, are considered to have elevated stress if they have a combination of six critical and cautionary indicators.

Staff in the Auditor’s office created the FHI tool using historical financial information of entities that were declared in fiscal emergency, identifying common issues that were indicators of fiscal stress.

FHI reports are updated daily and can be found at www.ohioauditor.gov/fhi.  

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The Auditor of State’s office, one of five independently elected statewide offices in Ohio, is responsible for auditing more than 5,900 state and local government agencies.  Under the direction of Auditor Dave Yost, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies and promotes transparency in government.

Contact:
Ben Marrison
Director of Communications
614-644-1111