The legislative audit subcommittee gave approval to begin an audit of the Attorney Generals office, yesterday. But the process won’t begin until September.
Legislative Auditor General John Schaff told the committee that his office is already busy doing so many other requested audits that they don’t have the resources available to begin a comprehensive one of the Attorney General’s office. Instead, he suggested that his staff could find ways to narrow the scope of the requested audit and report those findings back to the committee some time in November. Shaff also made it clear that an audit his office will perform isn’t about specific individuals including Attorney General John Swallow.
“It is not an investigation it is an audit," Schaff says. "And it’s really an audit of the efficiency and effectiveness of the office as it’s operating now.”
Rep. LaVar Christensen, R-Draper, is the legislator pushing for the audit to happen. He says while he’d hoped to see a more comprehensive look at the office he wants to at least make sure they are asking the right questions.
“How many times are they outsourcing like they did with the Legacy highway? When did they do it? Why did they do it? Is it effective? The statute says that they will account for the funds that they receive to perform their constitutional and statutory offices like all the other departments are expected to do," Christensen says. "So, we’d like to just have some accountability and understand it better.”
The Office of the Legislative Auditor General is currently performing more than 13 separate audits.