Thursday, August 25, 2016

Building and construction audit finds state inspections not being done

(From State Auditor Nicole Galloway)

Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway has released an audit of the state agency responsible for building and construction oversight. The audit covered the Office of Administration's Division of Facilities Management, Design and Construction, which is responsible for the design, construction, renovation and repair of more than 150 state-owned offices and institutional facilities. The report found that, due to inadequate funding, necessary maintenance for state facilities had been delayed, and inspections on some buildings were not being completed as required by law.

"Regular inspections are necessary to identify and address issues before they become problematic, which minimizes upkeep costs and ensures buildings are safe," Auditor Galloway said. "The longer maintenance is delayed, the more expensive those updates become, and that costs taxpayers more in the long run."

Auditors found that, due to insufficient funding, state officials delayed repair needs, creating a backlog of deferred maintenance of nearly $600 million. The division also failed to prepare long-range plans for capital improvements for more than a decade. Some facilities had not received required inspections in years, although Missouri law mandates annual inspections for improvement planning and maintenance, as well as repair inspections at least once every four years.

The audit found some cases where the state did not comply with several requirements of Missouri's prevailing wage law, which sets the minimum required rate contractors must pay workers when their companies are hired for state construction and maintenance jobs.

Additional findings related to electronic data security and work order requirements. A complete copy of the report, which received an overall performance rating of "good," is online here.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Freedum from regulation!

My goal is to cut government in half in twenty-five years, to get it down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub. Grover Norquist