03/28/2017
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway today released a follow up report to an audit of Wayne County, located in Southeast Missouri. The review shows the county is making progress after a 2016 audit identified concerns related to its financial condition.
"While the county continues to face serious financial concerns, leaders appear to be taking steps to improve operations and management practices and budget oversight," Auditor Galloway said. "I'm pleased to see this progress and encourage county officials to continue keeping a close watch over the county budget and taxpayer dollars for the benefit of Wayne County residents."
The report shows the county commission has improved management of the county's budget, and ended calendar year 2016 with a balance of nearly $140,000 in the general fund, which was significantly higher than their estimate of about $1,000.
The county has faced a poor financial condition since at least 2007. Voters passed a half-cent general sales tax increase in 2012 to alleviate some of the budget strain, but the effect has been limited because the sales tax came with a requirement that property taxes be reduced. As of last year, the county owed more than $470,000 to the Special Road and Bridge Fund, because the road and bridge levy was reduced related to sales tax collections, which had been deposited into the general fund since 1991. The Special Road and Bridge Fund is only supposed to be used to pay for costs related to improving and maintaining county roads and bridges.
A complete copy of the follow up report is available online here.
