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July 29, 2015      2:55 PM

Patterson: My response to the GLO audit

In op-ed, former Land Commissioner of Texas Jerry Patterson says “I can’t speak to the motive of the current Commissioner for apparently endeavoring to drop his predecessor ‘in the grease’ but I would suggest he put more focus on doing his job and less on covering his derriere.”

Audits are a good thing. State agencies always learn things that help them improve their ability to perform their mission, and the recently released audit of the Texas General Land Office is no exception.

The State Auditor’s Office is a credit to Texas government. If I were going to engage an auditor, I would pick John Keel and his extremely professional crew. They are the best.  

However, an audit should be a two way endeavor where both the auditor and audit subject are engaged in the process. It is the responsibility of the agency to provide the rationale for certain decisions when the auditor finds an apparent discrepancy.

At least in one part of the recent Texas GLO audit that I have personal knowledge of, that appears not to have been the case.

The complete column from Jerry Patterson can be found in the R&D Department.

By Jerry Patterson