Columbus – Spring Valley Township overpaid a road repair company by more than $35,000 in 2015 and failed to realize the mistake until state auditors discovered it almost two years later.

The Greene County township issued a $35,124 check to Ray Hensley Inc. on Nov. 2, 2015, as what was supposed to be a partial payment for road repairs. But the township had already paid the full $82,197 cost of the repairs two weeks earlier, auditors said in a report released today.  

“It shouldn’t have taken two years and a team of auditors to bring this error to light,” Auditor of State Dave Yost said. “Good internal controls could have caught this double payment from the get-go and prevented this wasteful spending of tax dollars.”

The Springfield-based paving company did not issue a refund until auditors alerted the township to the overpayment in August 2017. The company repaid the township by check on Sept. 5, 2017. 

The audit report, which covers 2015 and 2016, contains several recommendations for the township to strengthen its policies and internal controls so similar errors do not occur in the future. 

A full copy of the report is available online.

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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.

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