Mississippi State Auditor Announces Tax Diversion from Six More Cities over Delinquent Audits
Mississippi — State Auditor Shad White announced on October 30 that the State Auditor's Office will begin diverting tax revenue from six municipalities to pay for their overdue municipal audits. The newly added towns are Columbus, Clarksdale, Senatobia, Louisville, Winona and Okolona.
White said municipalities with overdue or delinquent audits are often unable to access grants or borrow money, and their citizens cannot know how their tax dollars are spent; diverting the tax revenue is a direct way to pay for the outstanding audits.
The office had previously taken the same step for Grenada, Canton, Holly Springs, Indianola, Maben and Tchula. The office noted that municipal audits are a basic element of local fiscal transparency, and long-delinquent audits affect not only a town's financing and grant eligibility but also residents' ability to oversee public funds.
With the six new towns added to the previous six, 12 municipalities statewide now have tax revenue diverted over audit problems. White did not specify in the October 30 announcement which years or amounts each town owes; audit statuses can be checked on the office's website, and whether the towns will file the audits and restore normal grant eligibility remains to be seen.
Source: GSM America
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Jackson December 2018 02 (Mississippi State Capitol) (cropped)。来源：Wikimedia Commons（Michael Barera，CC BY-SA 4.0）
