As your Erie County Comptroller it has been one of my primary goals to use the Comptroller's power to audit county government to expose waste, fraud and abuse of county tax dollars. By exposing wasted tax dollars we can create a better, more efficient county government. Since taking office, my Audit Division has issued audits and reviews on many topics that impact Erie County including:

2006

• An Audit on how the Board of Elections could better manage its workforce.
• An Audit on the mismanagement of Erie County's cell phones and wireless devices.
• A Review of the Proposed Wendt Beach Bed & Breakfast Transaction.
• An Audit on the Payroll and Purchasing Practices at Erie Community College.
• A Review on Erie County's Forest Management Plan and its Implementation.

2007

• An Audit of the Sheriff's Management of the Erie County Holding Center.
• A Review of an Agreement with the City of Buffalo to Provide Cellblock Functions.
• An Audit of Erie County's use of Federal and State Homeland Security Funding.
• An Audit on the Receipt of Bed Taxes by Erie County.
• An Audit on the Erie County Sheriff Office's Operation of the Erie County Correctional Facility.

2008

• An Audit of the Erie County Medical Center Corporation.
• A Review of the Costs associated with Real Property Assessment in Erie County.
• An Audit of Erie County's Central Police Services.
• An Audit of Erie County's Dept. of Social Services.

I am proud of the work of this division as it becomes more than the division of audit, but more like Erie County's own "Bureau of Inspector General."

In fact, our efforts were noticed internationally when the Association of Local Government Auditors, an international association of professional government auditors across the US and Canada, gave our office its prestigious 2007 Bronze Knighton Award for small audit departments. My Office is the first municipal government auditor in New York State ever to receive any Knighton Award.

You can help in our efforts to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in county government because if you become aware of what appears to be a waste of taxpayers' dollars please feel free to send us a confidential, or if you like, anonymous tip through my office's Internet Tip Line by clicking HERE.

While the Audit Division is a key component of my office's effort to create a better Erie County, my other departments are also working hard each day to to find ways to save taxpayers money.