Friday, Jul. 25, 2008

Credit card misuse by county workers drops dramatically

Five years ago this summer, Stanislaus County was reeling from investigations showing casual use and misuse of credit cards by a number of city and county leaders.

The problem felt epidemic at the time, with incidents involving the county chief executive, the mayors of Modesto and Hughson, a Modesto City Council member and others. No one was convicted of criminal behavior, but inappropriate practices directly or indirectly cost a few people their jobs and forced public agencies throughout the county to keep closer track of expense reimbursements and spending habits.

That history came to mind this week as the county Board of Supervisors reviewed reports by its internal audit division. The auditors found some problems; if they hadn't, we would have been suspicious of the reports' validity. But overall, the findings were relatively minor, things such as missing signatures on payroll timecards and improper paperwork on purchase card transactions. These are the same kinds of problems that occur in the private sector.

Many of the scandals of 2003 involved inappropriate use of government agency credit cards for personal or unauthorized purchases. In this audit, the accountants found 42 inappropriate purchases totaling $2,868. That represented only 0.17 percent of the value of the transactions reviewed.

The scandals of 2003 put credit card spending habits in the spotlight. But memories fade. The improvements evident in the new county reports are the result of more deliberate actions:

The county added accountants to its auditing division in 2003 and again this past year. The office is under the capable leadership of Auditor Larry Haugh, who may be the least-known elected official in the county. He was appointed in 2001 and has run unopposed ever since.

Chief Executive Officer Rick Robinson, who was hired in 2004, has recommended pay raises for county department heads based in part on their responsiveness to audit recommendations. In other words, the audits wouldn't just sit on a shelf.

The supervisors themselves try to avoid extravagant spending and, as they did Tuesday, ask questions and emphasize the importance of well-documented spending.

There's still room for improvement, but the county has come a long way in making sure the public's money is spent for appropriate public uses. That kind of oversight rebuilds public confidence in government.