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YELLOW SHEET Office of the State Auditor of Missouri |
Report No. 2004-60
August 26, 2004
Our office conducted an audit of the County Collector, Miller County, Missouri.
State statute requires the state auditor to audit the office of the County
Collector after being notified of a vacancy in that office. On February 15,
2004, a vacancy occurred in the office of the County Collector of Miller County,
Missouri; a successor was appointed effective March 4, 2004. An annual
settlement for the year ended February 29, 2004, was filed on May 27, 2004.
During our review of the annual settlement, we noted the aggregate abstract
prepared by the County Clerk indicated total railroad and utility taxes of
approximately $2,351,000, however, only approximately $2,328,000 was reflected
on the County Collector's annual settlement. Several utility billings were
revised and reissued by the County Clerk, resulting in tax reductions of
approximately $23,000, which were not adequately documented.
It appears that approximately $31,000 in delinquent taxes had not been accounted
for, of which approximately $26,000 was owed from a utility company that had
filed for bankruptcy. The county was not aware that this company owed delinquent
taxes and did not file a claim with the bankruptcy court. Our office contacted
the company regarding the balance owed and as a result, the company paid $26,000
to the county in June 2004. Because of the county's lack of monitoring, this
amount may not have been collected. Additionally, there was no evidence of
review of the annual settlement by the County Clerk or the County Commission.
