JLF’s Julie Tisdale, who looks at activities of local government, offers her perspective on the missing money in Wake County.
The Wake Register of Deeds fiasco offers an extreme example, but one wonders whether other local government offices in the state that have had cash disappear. Unfortunately, humans are susceptible to that sort of temptation. There are probably other sorts of irregularities that could be found if we knew where to look. Perhaps this incident can serve as a wake-up call to local governments across North Carolina. Perhaps there are lessons that can be learned. If so, Wake County’s loss can be North Carolina’s gain. Better procedures for handling money, regular audits, and electronic payments can all help local governments ensure that taxpayers’ money is going where it’s supposed to. And that is an important and central role of local government.
Read Julie’s full analysis here.
