News

Preble County -

Auditor of State Mary Taylor released the audit of the village of West Elkton for fiscal years 2005 and 2006. A referral to the Ohio Ethics Commission was also made.

The audit outlines several weaknesses in the financial management of the village which was placed in fiscal emergency on September 16, 2004. West Elkton remains in fiscal emergency.

Findings outlined in the audit report include:

• Inaccurate and incomplete accounting records and bank reconciliations
• Lack of proper oversight over the payroll process
• Fees and other penalties charged to the village for making late payments

“It is critical that public entities properly and accurately document each and every tax dollar collected and spent,” Taylor said. “The failure to do so increases the potential of fraud and misspending.”

The ethics referral is the result of the village clerk performing additional duties without the approval of village council. The referral also notes that a village councilman voted to increase the salary of his spouse, who is the village clerk.

A copy of the complete audit is available online at www.auditor.state.oh.us.

###

The Ohio Auditor of State’s office is one of the largest accounting offices in the nation.  The office strives to ensure that all public funds are spent legally and appropriately and works aggressively to root out fraud, waste and abuse in public spending. Taylor encourages anyone suspecting fraud or misspending of public dollars to contact her office toll free at 1-866-FRAUD-OH (1-866-372-8364). Since taking office in January 2007, Taylor has identified more than $10.5 million in public funds that were handled improperly, spent illegally or stolen and must be repaid.