The Missouri Department of Conservation has been spending a little too freely, according to a report released by the state auditor's office Friday.
The audit, which spanned 2013 and 2014, found the department spent an "excessive" amount on group meals, violated IRS requirements by not reporting clothing and uniform expenditures, overpaid some grant recipients and did not disclose public information about legal settlements.
The department agreed to make some of the auditor's recommended changes, but disagreed with several of the findings. Conservation officials said their clothing policies do comply with the IRS, and their practices don't conflict with Missouri's Sunshine Law. They also contested their spending on group meals serves "a valuable business purpose of developing and perpetuating the working relationship between the Commission and the staff."
"While the Missouri Department of Conservation works to protect (Missouri's) precious resources, there are internal policies and practices that could be improved to ensure that the department is using its funding as effectively and efficiently as possible," Auditor Nicole Galloway said in a press release.
Despite these findings, the Department of Conservation received an overall "good" rating. Gena Terlizzi, director of communications for the state auditor, said the rating is a result of a holistic view of the organization and the overall integrity of the department led to the positive rating.
"It is based on a number of factors," Terlizzi said. "But the types of findings, the severity of the findings and the number of findings all come into play in evaluating what the bigger picture is of how an entity is operated."
Overall, the Department of Conservation is happy with the results, said Aaron Jeffries, the department's assistant director.
"We're pleased that the auditor had no issues with fraud or abuse," Jeffries said. "The rating was consistent with what it's been in the past, and that was a good rating."
Jeffries also said the issues identified are being addressed, and the department plans to stay with the "practices and procedures" required by the state and the IRS.