| Public Release Date: May 16, 1997 | No. 97-30 |
The Office of the State Auditor (OSA) was established by Article V of the state Constitution and operates under Minnesota Statute Chapter 6. The State Auditor is elected for a four-year term. Judith Dutcher, the current State Auditor, began her term on January 2, 1995. The State Auditor serves on the state's Executive Council, State Board of Investment, Land Exchange Board, State Housing Finance Agency Board, Board of Government Innovation and Cooperation, the Public Employees Retirement Association Board, and the Rural Finance Authority.
The OSA receives support for its operations in the form of state appropriations. Minn. Stat. Section 6.58 requires the OSA to bill audit clients for the costs of audits and examinations at a rate sufficient to cover the cost of its audits. The audit practice receipts collected from clients are deposited as nondedicated receipts in a special revenue account.
Our audit scope included a review of the Office of the State Auditor's appropriation, audit practice revenue, personnel services, and administrative expenditures for the period from January 1, 1995, through December 31, 1996.
We audited the OSA's compliance with its legal appropriation authority. The OSA spent its state appropriation within the appropriation authority.
We also audited the OSA's audit practice revenue obtained through reimbursements of OSA client audit costs. For the transactions tested, we concluded that the OSA properly billed for audit costs and properly processed and collected audit practice receipts. The State Auditor generated sufficient revenues to recover reimbursable audit costs for fiscal years 1995 and 1996 combined.
Finally, we reviewed OSA's expenditures. We audited the OSA's personnel services during the audit period for compliance with applicable legal requirements and to verify transactions were properly processed and recorded. For the transactions tested, the OSA properly processed and recorded payroll transactions.
The administrative expenditures we reviewed were: travel, rent, and capital expenditures. We verified the reliability of procedures and accurate processing of transactions. For transactions tested, the OSA properly and accurately processed, recorded, and paid expenditures through the state accounting system.
