Public Release Date: August 7, 1998 | No. 98-44 |
The Legislature created the four ombudspersons for families positions in 1991. The legislation required that they operate independent of, but in collaboration with, the following councils: the Asian Pacific Council, the Indian Affairs Council, the Council on Black Minnesotans, and the Spanish-Speaking (Chicano-Latino) Affairs Council. One ombudsperson represents each of these communities. The goal of the ombudspersons is to ensure that agencies implement all laws governing the protection of children and their families in a culturally competent manner. In 1994, the four ombudspersons became the Office of Ombudspersons for Families, separate and apart from the related minority councils.
We audited the Office of Ombudspersons for Families for the period July 1, 1995, through June 30, 1998. Our audit scope included payroll, rent, and other administrative expenditures. We found that the office designed internal controls to provide reasonable assurance that payroll, rent, and other administrative expenditures were properly authorized, supported, and recorded in the accounting records, in compliance with applicable legal provisions.