Under North Dakota law, the North Dakota State Auditor’s Office may be called on to audit or review any political subdivision of the state if enough qualified voters of that political subdivision request the audit/review.
The following sections explain the procedures for residents that are seeking an audit/review through the petition process.
The Office of the State Auditor does not audit/review issues that are currently in litigation or where litigation is imminent. Because we must defer to the courts, we wait until litigation is completed before we issue a petition audit/review.
Ways to Obtain an Audit
There are a few different ways an audit/review of a political subdivision can be obtained. North Dakota Century Code (N.D.C.C.) 54-10-15 states that audits/reviews of political subdivisions can be ordered by the Legislative Audit and Fiscal Review Committee, upon petition, or upon request by the governor or by the state court administrator. If any of these audits/reviews are performed, they are paid for by the political subdivision being audited.
Steps to Initiate a Petition Audit
Below are the necessary steps to take to create a valid petition for an audit/review of a political subdivision.
- Identify a chief petitioner from the political subdivision (looking to request an audit/review) who can serve as the main contact for the State Auditor’s Office, should questions arise about the petition.
- Download the Petition Audit Request Form. Once completed, submit that to the Office of the State Auditor via mail or email at ndsao@nd.gov. Once received by the office, an audit manager will reach out to the chief petitioner contact to discuss the concerns.
- If the concerns are deemed auditable and significant enough to warrant a petition audit, you will be given a petition template to circulate. See Questions and Answers below (#7) for examples of things the North Dakota State Auditor’s Office cannot audit. The petition will be deemed confidential upon receipt by the State Auditor’s Office (N.D.C.C. 54-10-25.1 and 54-10-26). This means, no petition submitted will be made available to the public. Names, signatures, addresses, will remain confidential, even after the audit is complete.
- Once given the petition by the State Auditor’s Office, it can be circulated. The petition must be returned no later than 180 days from the receipt of the petition. According to N.D.C.C. 54-10-15, the petition must have signatures from at least thirty-five percent of the qualified electors of the political subdivision voting at the preceding for the office of the governor at the preceding general election or, in the case of school districts, the preceding school board election. Contact the North Dakota State Auditor’s Office to get the number for the required number of signatures.
- After the petition is turned in, the signatures will be verified to determine that they are qualified electors of the appropriate subdivision, and the required number of valid signatures have been collected.
- If the Auditor's Office determines a petition audit should proceed, the team would then determine the scope of the audit/review. The audit/review may not include all the concerns identified by the petitioners.
Once a certified petition is received, data relating to an audit/review are not considered public records and are exempt from open records laws until the final report has been published by the Office of the State Auditor. Once a report is final, the working papers of an issued report are public. At the discretion of the State Auditor, all, or a portion of the working papers of an issued audit/review may be declared confidential.
Questions and Answers about Petition Audits
- Who can begin the petition audit process?
Anyone can start the process to initiate a petition audit by submitting a Petition Audit Request form. It is important to note that the person(s) circulating the petition and collecting signatures must be a qualified elector of the political subdivision. This includes the person who submits the signatures to the State Auditor's Office, known as the chief petitioner.
- Once a petition is on the list of audits to be performed, how long before work will begin?
Work begins on petition audits as soon as staff members are available. It is often several months before the audit/review can be scheduled.
- How are petitioners informed of the progress of an audit?
The chief petitioner will be notified when the audit/review is scheduled. A meeting will be held to discuss petitioner concerns before the audit begins. The results of the audit/review will be available to the petitioner(s) and the public once the final report is released (N.D.C.C. 54-10-26). A meeting is held with petitioners after the audit is complete to address any questions.
- How is the public informed of the audit results?
At the conclusion of a petition audit/review, a press release will be issued. Press releases and reports are available on the home page of the State Auditor’s website.
- What happens if the auditor uncovers something like potential fraud or a large amount of money missing?
If information is uncovered that indicates ongoing criminal activity or fraud, the State Auditor’s Office informs the proper authorities as soon as possible. In less serious cases, the report will note the problem and recommend the proper steps to correct the situation.
- How are audit report/review recommendations (known as "findings") enforced?
State law does not allow the Auditor’s Office to require an entity to implement recommendations, however, the law does allow for the Auditor's Office to resume audits of that entity until the areas of concern are corrected. (N.D.C.C. 54-10-14(6).
- What kinds of things will the Auditor’s Office not be able to audit?
We can’t audit anything based on administrative decisions, best practices, efficiencies, or effectiveness. We can only audit things that are tied to financial statements, laws, or policies. It is also important to note that petition audits are financial audits, not performance audits. A financial audit verifies the accuracy of an organization’s financial statements, while a performance audit assesses how efficiently and effectively an organization is achieving its objectives.
- Can petitioners pick the audit timeframe?
The petition year is going to depend on when the last audit was and the timing of the petition. We may not be able to audit the year(s) that are declared on the petition itself. If concerns are tied directly to a specific timeframe, that should be noted in the concerns and shared with the audit staff prior to the audit kicking off.
- Can an audit be done on a year that was previously audited?
Sometimes. This is an uncommon practice and would ultimately be the decision of the audit team.
- Who can submit concerns to the State Auditor?
The North Dakota State Auditor’s Office will take all concerns from citizens. Our office requests if you know who the chief petitioner is to attempt to get your concerns to that individual for ease and to make sure all concerns are reviewed. Concerns can be emailed to ndsao@nd.gov up until the deadline published in the press release.
- Are there entities you can't audit?
We do not audit private companies. We are also not allowed to audit entities that are not listed in state law under N.D.C.C. 54-10-14.
Last Updated: October 24, 2024
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