11/06/2015
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway has released an audit of Ralls County, and found a weak system of checks and balances for computer access of taxpayer information.
“Local governments must ensure protections are in place to secure taxpayer information and prevent it from being accessed or altered by unauthorized individuals," Auditor Galloway said. “A strong system of checks and balances protects taxpayers and keeps government in line. Without these basic controls, government is left unchecked and taxpayers are left vulnerable.”
Auditors found the county collector has inappropriate computer access to county tax records, allowing the county collector the ability to alter individual tax records, tax rates, assessed valuations and property tax billing information. Neither the county commission nor the county clerk adequately reviews the financial activities of the county collector.
Other audit findings include a lack of proper accounting, review and documentation for receipts, deposits, liabilities and invoices in the sheriff's office.
The current report includes information for audit year 2014. Ralls County's previous audit was released in June of 2012. Many of the same concerns were noted in both audits and county officials have not taken steps to improve accountability to taxpayers.
This audit report gives the program a performance rating of "fair." The complete report is available here.
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