Legislative Hearings on State Audit Reports
The legislature’s Transportation Committee will hold a hearing next month to deal with a recent Auditors of Public Accounts report detailing problems at the Connecticut Port Authority.
The State Auditors Office performs important work, and their reports offer legislators—and the public—valuable insight into the mechanics of state government.
Examples of problems outlined in the Auditors reports include:
- Abuse of overtime
- Workplace violence complaints
- Massive financial reporting errors
- Benefits payments to deceased individuals
- IT security issues
A report issued just last month detailed how more than $260,000 in checks submitted to the Department of Agriculture went undeposited for months.
Despite these glaring problems, you may be surprised to know lawmakers rarely get the chance to ask questions about those reports in a formal setting.
Recently passed state law requires relevant committees to hold hearings within 180 days from the time reports are submitted to the legislature. As it stands, there are nearly 40 reports that are overdue for hearings – and the Democrats who control these committees have not scheduled any, with the exception of the Port Authority which Republicans pushed for.
I believe legislators should be able to ask questions about situations such as that, and it’s why my caucus issued a letter to Democrat leaders urging hearings.
We haven’t received a response yet, but I’ll let you know when we do. In the meantime, check out the APA’s site and its many reports.