Columbus – Controlling health insurance costs and staffing levels could help save more than $3.8 million for Marion City Schools (Marion County) according to a performance audit released today by Auditor of State Dave Yost.

“Ohio school districts must take a hard look at all expenditures to find ways to save tax dollars,” Auditor Yost said. “In Marion City Schools, that hard look turned up potential savings of nearly 7 percent of its budget.”

The audit, requested by the school district, recommends paying only the employer’s share of retirement and not the employee’s share (pick-up) to save the district more than $240,000 annually. An additional $300,000 could be saved by reconfiguring buildings to reduce underused space. More than $1 million could be saved by requiring employees to pay a share of their health insurance expense that is more in line with peers, and $2.2 million could be saved if the district staffed at levels similar to peer districts.

A full copy of this performance audit can be found 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 5,600 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:
Carrie Bartunek
Press Secretary
614-644-1111