The chairman of a key Michigan State House committee says some bad things have been happening involving state spending practices surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak.

Republican State Representative Greg VanWoerkom is now demanding the Whitmer administration come clean on how it has allowed state employees to spend your tax money. He says there is a clear need for a more detailed audit of purchasing practices by the state covering the past year.

It all came to light through a little-publicized report from the Michigan Office of the Auditor General. It was just released last month. The report reveals as much as $32 million dollars was spent by state employees using state-issued credit cards they were not authorized to use.  The next question which remains unanswered is what all was bought, and for what reason.

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The audit shows emergency procurement credit cards were issued to specific state employees who had the authorization to use them. But somehow, they were shared with other state employees leading to the millions in questionable spending. The state Auditor General indicates that exposes the state to the potential of abuse and misuse of state money. Your money. VanWoerkom says,  “That’s like passing around a company credit card to people who aren’t supposed to have it – and that’s a significant problem.”

Representative VanWoerkom’s State House Appropriations Subcommittee is also releasing some preliminary information about another, and related concern. The audit is raising concerns about the wiring of millions of dollars to suppliers before goods were received. VanWoerkom says the state needs to step it up.  Another area his committee is reviewing is the state’s practice of leasing vehicles and spending for office space at a time when thousands of state employees are required to work from home with no hard date when they may return.

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