11/30/2017
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway has released audit reports of Pike County and the Pike County Circuit Court, both located in northeast Missouri. The county received an overall rating of good while the court received an overall performance rating of fair.
"These audits make recommendations to improve oversight and promote transparency within the county and court," Auditor Galloway said. "I urge officials to work to strengthen their financial processes to better manage and protect taxpayer dollars."
The audit of Pike County Circuit Court recommended a number of improvements to enhance oversight for financial transactions. The report also recommended improved processes for collecting court debts and ensuring the court is reimbursed for court fees and incarceration costs in criminal cases.
The audit of Pike County government found the county has not accurately reduced the property tax levy. State law allows voters to approve a county sales tax, but requires property taxes be reduced by a certain percentage, based on the total revenue generated by the sales tax. Pike County residents approved a sales tax increase with a property tax reduction of 50%. This concern was noted in a past report and, while some efforts were made to address the issue, the county has still not reduced property taxes by the correct amount.
The report also identified the need for increased oversight within the sheriff's office and made recommendations to improve processes within the public administrator's office.
The complete Pike County report is available online here. The complete audit of Pike County Circuit Court is here.
For more information, contact:
