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7/25/2005
Legislation Strengthening The New Castle County Auditor’s Office Becomes Law
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 25, 2005
Contact: Stephanie Mantegna, House of Representatives, 302-577-8515
Legislation introduced by State Representative Gregory F. Lavelle (R-Sharpley) to strengthen the independence of the New Castle County Auditor’s Office is now law.
House Substitute 1 to House Bill 55, recently signed by the Governor, modifies the existing functions and duties of the County Auditor to bring more independence and accountability to the position. Rep. Lavelle sponsored the bill originally in 2004 when it became apparent that the current laws dictating the auditor's responsibilities were out of date and ineffective. The shortcomings in the state law which regulate the office were brought to Rep. Lavelle's attention by now former New Castle County Auditor Robert Hicks.
The changes will help strengthen the independence of the office and providing better oversight of county government. The legislation does the following:
- Strengthens the statutory qualifications for the office by requiring that the County Auditor be a Certified Public Accountant;
- Provides that the County Auditor may be removed at will, but only by an affirmative vote of 2/3 of the members of New Castle County Council;
- Prohibits the County Auditor from actively participating in partisan political activity (such as running for elected public office or serving as a party committee-person);
- Requires the establishment of an independent Audit Committee, whose members will be appointed by New Castle County Council and responsible for overseeing the Auditor’s Office; and
- Permits the County Auditor (upon the request of County Council or the County Executive, or upon his own initiative with the approval of the Audit Committee) to undertake an audit of transactions and matters if there is reasonable grounds to believe that any unauthorized, illegal, irregular or unsound practices are being used.
Rep. Lavelle also stated, “The audit function of any organization is critical. This is true for businesses and governments. The taxpayers of New Castle County deserve to know that their scarce tax dollars are being protected by audit functions which are current, reflect best practices and operate with reasonable independence from chains of command without losing accountability to county government.”
According to Rep. Lavelle, “I want to thank New Castle County Council and the County Executive for their support of this legislation. I would also be remiss in not acknowledging former New Castle County Auditor Robert Hicks for his insight and many contributions toward making these reforms within county government a reality, and for increasing the autonomy, effectiveness and operations in the Auditor’s Office.
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