Auditor General, Office of

The Office of the Auditor General was established in 1974 to provide independent evaluations of government programs to the General Assembly. Audits are performed as required by statute, or as directed by the Joint Committee on Legislative Services, a bipartisan committee consisting of the Speaker of the House and the majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate.

The Office of the Auditor General is responsible for preparing an annual financial audit of the State’s financial statements and an annual compliance audit of all federal assistance received during every fiscal year. Additional responsibilities in any given year may include: (a) conducting performance audits; (b) issuing accounting opinions; (c) attending meetings and hearings relevant to on-going audit special projects and research studies for individual legislators; (f) participating on policy-making boards of professional organizations; and (g) making determinations regarding emergency situations which would permit a municipality to exceed the statutory 5.5 percent cap on annual property tax levy increases.