Kentucky Republicans want to spend $1.5 million to audit the state’s largest school system to make sure it isn’t wasting or misusing money.
But Jefferson County Public Schools officials say they already are mandated by the state Department of Education to do an annual audit and are concerned about the additional manpower of another audit. They also question why a new state audit will be so expensive for taxpayers. The district paid $260,000 for its most recent audit.
In the GOP proposed budget, which has gained House approval, State Auditor Allison Ball has requested $1.5 million over the course of two years to put toward a JCPS audit that would protect “against waste, fraud and abuse.”
The audit, Ball told house budget committee members in early January, would be the first done by the state in 10 years.
That timeline, though, doesn’t take into account other state audits JCPS has undergone, and JCPS officials question the motive behind another audit, disagreeing with what they say is the common notion among Frankfort politicians that the district is overspending.