COLUMBUS – Findings for recovery totaling $5,916 were repaid, under audit, by two Madison Township trustees, who were overpaid in 2022.

State auditors also identified a conflict of interest involving payments from the Highland County township to a business owned by a trustee, among 21 issues detailed in the audit report and management letter covering Madison Township’s financial activities from Jan. 1, 2021, through Dec. 31, 2022.

The full report, released Thursday, is available online via Search Audits (https://ohioauditor.gov/auditsearch/search.aspx).

The biennial audit included two findings for recovery after two township trustees’ compensation for 2022 was miscalculated. The findings of $2,958 against Trustees Bruce Baird and Charles Buck were both repaid under audit.

A third finding for recovery, totaling $5,977, was issued against the township’s fiscal officer, Sherri Beatty, after her compensation was miscalculated. That finding was resolved under audit after Beatty entered a 12-month repayment plan.

Among other issues, auditors also identified a conflict of interest after the township paid $3,517 in 2021 and $6,010 in 2022 to Buck’s Tire and Rental Service, a business owned by a trustee who did not abstain from voting on the transactions.

That issue was referred to the Ohio Ethics Commission, and auditors urged the township to “develop a formal policy regarding related party transactions to govern transactions in which members of the Board of Trustees may have a personal interest.”

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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 Keith Faber, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies, and promotes transparency in government. 

Public Affairs
Contact: Marc Kovac
press@ohioauditor.gov