The Missouri State Auditor’s Office has given Polk County an overall “good” performance rating in a recent audit. But the audit raised some concerns related to oversight and review procedures in the Polk County Collector's Office.
According to Auditor Nicole Galloway’s Office, the report found there is no review of the county collector's financial activities by the county clerk or the county commission, which it says “increases the risk of loss or misuse of funds.”
The report also describes errors that led to about $4,000 being mistakenly distributed to the Tax Maintenance and County Employees' Retirement Funds instead of the county's General Revenue Fund.
According to the report, unusual activity was detected in the county's Tax Maintenance Fund, which is administered by the county collector. Approximately $7,000 was transferred from the fund to the county's General Revenue Fund “for no dedicated purpose and no supporting documentation to explain the transfer.” There were also expenses for annual credit card fees, interest and late fees for personal credit cards. State law restricts fund expenditures to administration and operation costs of the county collector's office.
You can view the full report here.
