CARTER COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) — The Tennessee comptroller’s office released Carter County’s 2023 audit report on Tuesday. The audit reported 10 findings, six of which had been reported in last year’s poor audit and had not been corrected.
Carter County Commissioner Angie Odom said the findings from 2023’s audit aren’t good and she wants to find ways to make financial changes in the county. She said it’s commissioners’ jobs to ensure taxpayer’s money is being handled correctly.
“We were one of the worst counties in Tennessee?” Odom said. “When I heard that, I was like, ‘Oh, this is terrible.'”
According to comptroller’s office spokesperson John Dunn, the average Tennessee county had 3.5 findings in fiscal year 2023. Carter County was the fourth highest county in the state with audit findings. The most came out of Lewis County with 16 findings.
One of the first findings in the comptroller’s report is that Carter County did not comply with its balanced budget policy. Commissioners approved funds to non-profits in 2023 out of unassigned fund balance.
“We have to look at it: is it our place to just give away money to non-county things?” Odom said. “And I know it serves the county…and I do know that we did pass that this year, the money cannot come from the unassigned balance for any non-profits.”
Plus, for the second year, the comptroller found deficiencies with the Solid Waste Department including with internal controls and accounting, along with not reviewing audit logs.
Odom said she made reports to the state because she could not find financial logs when she went looking for them years before.
“There weren’t policies in place as far as if, you know, the same for everyone who comes through the window, this is how much it costs regardless of who you are,” Odom said. “It should be fair across the board.”
While 2023’s audit was being conducted, the landfill director resigned. Odom said an interim director has been putting in the work to make improvements.
The county’s finance director, Carolyn Watson, says she had hoped her office’s hard work and dedication would have been reflected in 2023’s audit report.
“We knew that because some of the findings originated from several years ago, it would take more than one year to get all the problems resolved,” Watson told News Channel 11 in a statement. “We have and continue to work toward that process. Given the extensive amount of turnover and unfilled staff positions the department experienced a couple of years ago it has taken longer than we had hoped to update the procedures necessary to get all the prior year audit findings cleared.”
Dunn said the comptroller office has concerns, especially since similar issues with county finances were also found in last year’s poor audit.
“And it’s a red flag to us because it indicates to us that there’s either an unwillingness or an inability to correct the finding,” Dunn said.
Dunn said the county is doing well financially, but not doing well with its financial management.
“What we see in Carter County is a good trend in that revenues have been going up over the last few years,” Dunn said. “Expenditures have also been going up, but expenditures are less than revenues which is important.”
Plus the comptroller’s said Carter County operates its finances through a centralized system.
“We see those centralized offices not only being the best practice, but also being successful throughout the state,” Dunn said. “It’s unusual to see a centralized office having struggles with financial management like we see in Carter County today.”
Dunn said county officials including county Mayor Patty Woodby and members of the financial management committee met with the state Wednesday afternoon to find ways to fix these issues.
Carter County Schools were also mentioned in the 2023 audit. This department had issues reported in its last audit as well.
News Channel 11 reached out to the school system and the Solid Waste Department for comment. Mayor Woodby has also been contacted for comment.
The next county budget meeting and hearing is on April 8.
