Morrissette Suggests DOC Audit Manipulation

The Legislature may have underfunded the Department of Corrections in order to manipulate a $1 million independent performance audit of the organization, says Rep. Richard Morrissette.

The Department of Corrections was underfunded by $42 million, despite agency officials and legislators agreeing that amount was needed by the department to do its job for Fiscal Year 2008, said Morrissette.

“If the Department of Corrections isn’t given the appropriation it needs, which it clearly wasn’t, of course they will come out on the wrong end of an independent performance audit,” said Morrissette, D-Oklahoma City. “We have the State Auditor and Inspector right here in the Capitol with not only the Constitutional mandate to audit and review state agencies, but also the expertise and experience to do so.

“It begs the question: why not save the state $1 million and have the State Auditor and Inspector’s Office handle this function? It is apparent that someone in the House majority doesn’t like our state auditor.And by the way, who are the so-called legislative leaders who picked this non-Oklahoma company to conduct this audit?”

In May, the Legislature approved a $1 million performance audit of the department to find a qualified firm to conduct the review of both the DOC’s operational costs and its internal policies that may be contributing to the agency’s annual budget shortfall.

This month, the state contracted with MGT of America, Inc. to conduct the independent review at a cost of $844,000.

Morrissette said it is a given that the audit will put the department in a bad light, which will lead to an increase in the use of privately run prisons in Oklahoma in the future.

“This is an overt attempt to bash a state agency and place the state corrections system on the path to a particular agenda of privately controlled prisons throughout the state,” said Morrissette. “This expenditure is unnecessary, appears politically motivated and will not result in better government."

Morrissette said the most obvious solution, short of allowing the State Auditor’s Office to conduct the review, is to form a legislative task force to study the issue and submit a report to the Legislature prior to the reconvening of the legislative session in February.

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Blackwell, Corn Criticize Henry's DOC Audit Veto

House Speaker Pro-Tempore Gus Blackwell (left) and Senator Kenneth Corn (below right) said today they are disappointed in Governor Brad Henry's veto of an audit to provide accountability and financial order in state prisons.

The independent outside audit of the Department of Corrections was a key portion of a bipartisan budget agreement passed overwhelmingly by both the Senate and the House. "This was not an accounting audit but a performance audit to find ways to better use taxpayer dollars, to maximize savings, increase efficiencies and create more accountability in this state's prison system," said Blackwell, R-Goodwell. "We all came together to find a solution to the crumbling financial status of our prisons that would ensure positive results."

"This audit has strong bipartisan support in both the House and Senate. It's a solid effort to reform a broken system that should have been fixed years ago," said Corn, D-Poteau. "In this particular audit, we want to examine population capacity management, staffing requirements, administrative controls and more so we can ensure that Corrections is doing everything it should to keep costs down and operate as efficiently as possible."

Blackwell said this is the second time in two years that Henry has vetoed legislation dealing with performance audits for government agencies. The DOC audit has been supported by legislative leaders in both parties, and would cost $1 million. This is a mere fraction of the DOC's massive half-a-billion-dollar budget. The savings would then be reinvested into the agency to help in critical areas.

The performance audit would not only examine costs, but operations and agency policies as well. "We need to review our prisons' population-capacity management, staffing requirements, administrative controls and other areas. This will enable informed long tern planning for DOC by both legislators and DOC itself," said Blackwell. "The governor has thrown a barricade across a road that will lead to success for Oklahoma's prison system."

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