Chapter 294
2009 -- S 0734 SUBSTITUTE A AS
AMENDED
Enacted 11/13/09
A N A C T
RELATING TO PUBLIC FINANCE - POST AUDIT OF ACCOUNTS
Introduced By: Senator Dennis L. Algiere
Date Introduced: February 26, 2009
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Sections 35-7-2 and 35-7-4 of the General Laws in
Chapter 35-7 entitled
"Post Audit of
Accounts" are hereby repealed in their entirety.
35-7-2.
Loan of auditors and accountants to other state departments.
-- When
requested by the director of any department or the chief of any
division, it shall be the duty of the
director of administration to furnish auditors or accountants
from the bureau of audits to
supplement and assist the auditors or accountants regularly
engaged by that department or
division. The auditors and accountants so furnished shall be
under the direction and control of and
responsible to the department to which they are furnished, and
the cost of this service shall be
charged against appropriations for personal services of the
department to which the services may
be rendered and credited to the account of the
department of administration.
35-7-4.
Periodic audits by department of administration. -- (a) The books of accounts
of all state departments and agencies shall be examined
by the director of administration or his or
her authorized agent or agents, from time to time as the
director may deem expedient or
necessary; provided, that the books of accounts shall be
examined at least once in every two (2)
years.
(b) No later than
January 1, 1997, the director of administration shall submit:
(1) A list of all
audits performed by the bureau of audits during the period January 1,
1994 through December 31, 1995; and
(2) An audit
schedule detailing how he or she or his or her authorized agent expects to
complete an examination of the books and records of all state
departments and agencies within
the two (2) year period commencing on January 1, 1997.
(c) Within sixty
(60) days following the date of the audit of each state department or
agency, the director of the department or agency audited
shall respond in writing to all
recommendations made by the bureau of audits. No later than six (6)
months following the date
on which recommendations are submitted, the bureau of
audits shall review the operations of the
department or agency to determine whether its recommendations
have been implemented.
(d) Copies of each
audit, the written response of each department or agency director to
the audit, and the results of each six (6) month review
described in subsection (c) shall be
submitted to the general assembly.
SECTION 2. Sections 35-7-3 and 35-7-5 of the General Laws in
Chapter 35-7 entitled
"Post Audit of
Accounts" are hereby amended to read as follows:
35-7-3.
Biennial inspections by department of administration.
–Audits performed
by the bureau of audits. -- The director
of administration or his or her duly authorized agent
shall at least once during each biennial period visit and
inspect each state department and agency,
and the director shall set forth the date of each visit
and inspection, by whom made, and such
comments and recommendations relative to the financial affairs
and the economy and efficiency
of management of each department and agency as he or she
may deem necessary or expedient.
(a) The bureau of
audits is authorized to conduct audits of any state department, state
agency, or private entity that is a recipient of state
funding or state grants. As deemed necessary
or expedient by the bureau of audits, audits may be made
relative to the financial affairs or the
economy and efficiency of management of each department and
agency. The bureau of audits
shall determine which such audits shall be performed in
accordance with a risk-based evaluation.
Unless there is an issue of misappropriation, the
provisions of this section shall not apply to non-
profit organizations.
(b) Within twenty
(20) days following the date of the issuance of the final audit report,
the head of the department, agency or private entity
audited shall respond in writing to each
recommendation made in the final audit report. This response shall
address the department's,
agency's or private entity's plan of implementation for each
specific audit recommendation and, if
applicable, the reasons for disagreement with any recommendation
proposed in the audit report.
Within one year following the date on which the audit
report was issued, the bureau of audits may
perform a follow-up audit for the purpose of determining
whether the department, agency or
private entity has implemented, in an efficient and effective
manner, its plan of action for the
recommendations proposed in the audit report.
(c) The bureau of
audits shall maintain a full record of each audit. In the event that
information gathered as a result of an audit indicates that
criminal activity may have occurred, the
chief of the bureau of audits may provide such information
to a state or federal law enforcement
agency. For any such information that is otherwise exempt
from public disclosure under the
provisions of
to a law enforcement agency shall not therefore require
that this information be further disclosed.
(d) Copies of each
audit report, the written response to the audit report, and the results of
each follow-up audit as described in subsection (b) above
shall be submitted to the chairpersons
of the house finance committee and the senate finance
committee.
35-7-5.
Investigations on request of governor or general assembly.
-- Investigations
or management advisory and consulting services upon
request of governor or general
assembly. -- The
director of administration bureau of audits shall, upon the
written request of the
governor, the director of the department of administration, or of either branch of the general
assembly, make such conduct audits, provide
management advisory and consulting services, or
conduct investigations relative to the financial affairs or
the economy and efficiency of
management, or both,
of the state and any state department or agency. and report
thereon as they
may require, and the director The bureau of audits may from time to time
make such
investigations and additional reports to the governor, the
director of the department of
administration, and the
general assembly as he or she the chief of the bureau shall deem
necessary
or advisable.
SECTION 3. Chapter 35-7 of the General Laws entitled
"Post Audit of Accounts" is
hereby amended by adding thereto the following sections:
35-7-3.1. Cost of
forensic examinations. – When it is determined by the bureau of
audits that an audit is necessary because there is
sufficient evidence to believe that there may
have been fiscal impropriety, wrongdoing or fiscal
mismanagement by any employee, board
member, or commissioner of any state agency or authority as
defined in section 42-35-1, the
bureau of audits may conduct a forensic examination of such
entity. All costs associated with the
forensic examination shall be paid, as deemed appropriate,
either by the examined entity or by an
appropriation proposed by the governor and enacted by the general
assembly. Such costs shall
include, but not be limited to, the following expenses:
(1) One hundred percent
(100%) of the total salaries and benefits paid to the examining
personnel of the bureau of audits engaged in those
examinations;
(2) All costs
associated with the procurement of a forensic consultant;
(3) All costs
associated with a consultant that provides expertise pertinent to the
examinee's operations;
(4) All reasonable
technology costs related to the forensic examination process.
Technology costs shall include the actual cost of
software and hardware utilized in the
examination process and the cost of training examination
personnel in the proper use of the
software hardware.
35-7-5.1.
Management advisory and consulting services provided to state agencies
and departments. – When requested in writing by the head of a state department or
agency to the
director of administration, the bureau of audits may provide
management advisory or consulting
services to the department or agency. Any such request must
include the scope of services
requested and a schedule for the work to be performed.
SECTION 4. Section 8-15-9 of the General Laws in Chapter
8-15 entitled "Court
Administration" is
hereby amended to read as follows:
8-15-9.
Supervision of court imposed and court related costs, fines, restitution, and
other payments, deposits, and receipts. -- Within the administrative office of the state courts
there shall be a finance section. The director of the
finance section shall be appointed by the chief
justice of the supreme court, and approved by a majority vote
of the advisory board. The director
of the finance section shall monitor the handling,
collection, receipt, and disbursement of all court
imposed or court related fees, fines, costs, assessments,
charges, and other monetary payments,
deposits, and receipts, including, but not limited to,
filing fees, court costs and fees, bail, fines,
judgments, awards, restitution payments, registry of court
accounts, restricted receipts accounts,
child support and other support orders, and court
stenographers' accounts. The director shall be
responsible for all bookkeeping and accounting of money collected
or received by the clerks of
the various state courts including, but not limited to,
sections 8-4-8, 8-8-16, 8-8-17, 8-8.2-3 and
8-10-10. The director shall
formulate and publish a policy which shall standardize the procedures
for the handling, collection, receipt, and disbursement
of court imposed or court related monetary
payments, deposits, and receipts. The court may require all
persons who enter into a payment plan
for the payment of court imposed or court related fees,
fines, court costs, assessments, charges
and/or any other monetary obligations to provide a valid
social security number, valid driver's
license number, and date of birth at the time they enter into
said payment plan. Provided,
however, social security numbers and driver's license numbers
shall not be part of the public
record and shall be used for collection purposes only.
All money subject to
the provisions of this section shall be audited by the state bureau of
audits or their designee not less than once per fiscal year.
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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LC01333/SUB A
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