Auditor General Jack Wagner: Welfare Dept.'s Lax Contract Monitoring Neglected Accountability of Taxpayer Money

Pennsylvania Auditor General Jack Wagner Says Waste, Abuse, and Potential Fraud Persists in LIHEAP Four Years After Being First Identified

What happens when government owns and operates all the liquor stores in Pennsylvania? An audit by Pennsylvania Auditor General Jack Wagner, a Democrat, found all sorts of problems with the state store system.

AG Audit Finds Rampant PLCB Waste and Mismanagement

Auditor General Jack Wagner's Annual Sharing & Caring Golf Tournament July 11 at Edgewood Country Club

Pennsylvania Auditor General Jack Wagner, the state's top elected Democrat, on efforts by the state Legislature to change the law requiring government bodies to publish legal notices in newspapers

House Bill 633, if enacted, would be another setback in making government more open and accountable to the public. Citizens interested in reviewing public notices would have to visit multiple websites to obtain the information they are seeking. This is not convenient and will decrease, rather than increase, bidding competition. In short, it's a bad deal for taxpayers.

Read Wagner's full op-ed at the link below:

Auditor general: Keep public notices in newspapers - The York Daily Record

Democrat Jack Wagner raises good points about diverting the tobacco settlement money, but where was he during the eight years of Gov. Ed Rendell's tenure, including the last four years when Democrats also had a majority in the state House?

The money was diverted by Rendell and the Democrats but Wagner didn't seem to have a problem with it then.

Auditor General Jack Wagner Calls for Hearings on Reallocation of $370 Million in Tobacco Settlement Funds

Auditor General Jack Wagner Says Pa. Needs Sentencing Reform, Construction Freeze to Shrink Corrections Costs

Auditor General Jack Wagner Offers Property Tax Relief Assistance for Pennsylvania Homeowners

Auditor General Jack Wagner Says He Will Audit Performance of LCB's Malfunctioning Wine Kiosks

Auditor General Jack Wagner Commends Turnpike Commission for Decision to Print Fares on Tickets

Ed Rendell originally wanted to borrow and spend another $1 billion before he leaves office next month.

Now he's willing to go down to $650 million How about he just goes away without saddling us with any more debt?

Too bad Democrats didn't nominate Jack Wagner as their candidate for governor this year instead of Rendell-clone Dan Onorato.

Auditor General Jack Wagner Says He Will Not Sign $650 Million Bond Issue, a Bad Deal for Pennsylvania Taxpayers

Auditor General Jack Wagner Calls for Moratorium On Cost of Living Salary Increases for Public Officials

PA Auditor General Jack Wagner Says Flawed Charter School Formulas Costing Taxpayers Millions

A new report by Pennsylvania Auditor General Jack Wager - a Democrat - says Pennsylvania is facing a $5 billion deficit when Gov. Ed Rendell leaves office.

"Pennsylvania's budgetary woes are far from over," Wagner said. "In fact, they will get worse before they get better."

Auditor General Jack Wagner Says Pennsylvania Faces $5 Billion Budget Gap in Fiscal Year 2011-12

From the Pennsylvania Taxpayers Cyber Coalition, which represents 36 grassroots taxpayer groups working for the elimination of school property taxes in the Keystone State:

The time for choosing has arrived! This Tuesday, May 18, is the date for the Pennsylvania primary election.

As you know, the Pennsylvania Taxpayers Cyber Coalition (PTCC) and The Pennsylvania Coalition of Taxpayer Associations (PCTA) have endorsed Sam Rohrer for Governor because of his unwavering efforts for property tax elimination and his promise to accomplish this if elected. PLEASE be sure to vote for Sam on May 18 if you’re a registered Republican. I know that many of you have changed your party affiliation so you can vote for Sam and your help is greatly appreciated.

If you're a Democrat, please consider voting for Jack Wagner for Governor. His stance on property tax elimination is not nearly as definitive as Sam's but at a gubernatorial forum in Hershey a few weeks ago he said about property taxes, "Sam Rohrer has some great ideas and it's really time to listen to him." This is more than any of the other Democratic candidates have offered and it's great to hear a possible Democratic opponent considering Sam's plan.

All 203 seats in the PA House of Representatives are up for grabs as well, although there are not very many primary election contests. If you live in a district where there is a primary opponent, please do some research before you vote to determine who supports property tax elimination. Remember, "relief" and "reform" are not what you want to hear. ELIMINATION is the only acceptable word!

One last note on the election: This Saturday, May 15, at 10:00 AM, Sam Rohrer will be having a rally on the Capitol steps in Harrisburg with country music star Aaron Tippin. It's going to be a great event, the weather forecast is for a beautiful day and a huge showing should get lots of media attention, so please attend, bring some friends, and help to swell the crowd! There will be buses available from some areas to make transportation simple. Details of the rally are here: http://www.samrohrer.org/stand-for-pennsylvania.html. It's free!

Auditor General Jack Wagner Joins Sens. Boscola and Browne to Promote Legislation Prohibiting Interest-Rate Swaps

One of the reasons for the growing mistrust of government is the fact that there are so many documented examples of money being wasted or handed out without property accountability.

A new audit conducted by the Pennsylvania Auditor General has found that 45% of the payments in the Department of Public Welfare's Special Allowance Program were issued without documented justification.

From a press released issued today by Wagner's office:

Auditor General Jack Wagner said today that a Department of Public Welfare program that provides cash assistance to welfare recipients seeking employment was rife with mismanagement and poor oversight, creating an environment for potential fraud and abuse that could cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.

In a special performance audit released today, Wagner's auditors found insufficient documentation to justify 45 percent of the 3,201 special allowance payments examined. Specifically, auditors found insufficient documentation for 163 recipients totaling $564,700 in cash for clothing, child care, tools, transportation and other expenses.

Wagner said his concern over potential fraud stemmed, in part, from the fact that DPW has acknowledged potentially fraudulent handling of special allowance funds in Philadelphia and reported cases to the Office of Inspector General for further investigation.

"With the commonwealth facing its greatest budgetary challenges since the Great Depression, all of us in state government must do everything we can to stretch every dollar and eliminate the potential for waste, fraud and abuse," Wagner said. "Department of Public Welfare management must provide greater leadership and be held accountable for its mishandling of taxpayer dollars, and must ensure that these vital funds are not wasted and are used appropriately so that these funds are available to assist some of Pennsylvania's most vulnerable citizens who are eligible and truly need the benefits."

Read the full release at the link below:

Auditor General Jack Wagner: DPW's Special Allowance Program Rife With Mismanagement, Potential for Fraud