Worthington column: State auditor's race should spur local interest

The runoff primary to determine the Republican nominee for state auditor will be held Tuesday, May 14th and early voting has already begun. People tend to take auditing for granted since the process usually receives little fanfare. But Elizabeth City’s accounting problems highlight the importance of auditors.

In the recent audit of Elizabeth City, the auditors found six material weaknesses in internal controls. It’s rare for auditors to find even a single material weakness so this is a very significant statement.

Another serious finding was that the city overspent several budget line items by over $200,000 in total. The City Council is supposed to amend the budget to increase the amount when it becomes apparent that expenditures will exceed appropriations, but they rely on the city manager to bring it to their attention.

However this is a poor excuse since they hired the manager.

The Office of the State Auditor ensures that state spending follows legal requirements. They audit state agencies such as Elizabeth City State University, which, by the way, has received outstanding audit reports.

The Local Government Commission oversees the audits of local governments, and the state auditor is a member of the commission. But local governments also fall within the authority of the state auditor to determine that funds are not misspent. State audits of cities or counties are relatively rare, but over the last two years, the State Auditor’s Office examined the town of Farmville and the city of Goldsboro over possible mismanagement and misappropriation of funds. And like Elizabeth City, Goldsboro has a history of submitting late audit reports due to poor accounting controls.

Dave Boliek is one of the two candidates in the May 14th runoff election to become the Republican nominee for the state auditor in the November election. He is an attorney with a master’s degree in business administration and a law degree from Campbell University. He has served on the University of North Carolina Board of Trustees and is currently in private practice.

Boliek has criticized Jessica Holmes, the current state auditor who was appointed by Gov. Roy Cooper, after Beth Wood resigned from the position. He said that the state auditor should have investigated the Durham Public Schools for alleged misspending of state funds after the 2023-24 pay scandals.

The Durham schools overpaid 74% of the district’s faculty, and then cut the employees’ pay to recover the overages. The outraged teachers staged several walkouts to protest the pay cuts. Then there was controversy over the amount paid to the superintendent after he resigned as a result of the scandal, while the system also paid the salary of his replacement.

Boliek also has said that the State Auditor’s Office should examine the city of Elizabeth City given its problems with its accounting system.

Jack Clark, the other Republican candidate in the runoff election for the Office of State Auditor, has declined to comment on any specific situations during the campaign. He is the only candidate of either party who is a professional auditor. He has a master’s in accounting from UNC-Chapel Hill, is a certified public accountant, and has recent audit experience. Currently he serves as a budget policy adviser for the North Carolina General Assembly.

All registered Republicans are eligible to vote in the May 14th runoff elections to decide the Republican nominees for lieutenant governor and the state auditor. Unaffiliated voters are also eligible if they either voted in the regular Republican primary or if they did not vote in the March primary at all. So instead of just complaining about politics, everyone should vote if they are eligible.