Bo Tefu and Antonio Ray Harvey | California Black Media
On Sept. 25, State Controller Malia Cohen released the Multi-AgencyCharter School Audits Task Force (Task Force) report listingrecommendations that reflect best practices to be adhered to — andimplemented by — charter schools and local education agencies (LEAs).The report titled “ Audit Best Practices for Detecting and CurtailingCharter School Fraud” includes 20 recommendations applicable toschool districts and county offices.
“I was surprised to learn, although charter schools brought us to thiswork and brought us to this table, a majority of the recommendationsapply to all public schools. So, there is an added benefit to everyone.”There are 1,300 charter schools operating in the state, according toCohen.The Task Force was assembled by a court order after 11 individualsaffiliated with charter schools charged by the San Diego DistrictAttorney were convicted of multiple counts of fraud. The case turned outto be the largest fraud scheme committed against California since thestate adopted public charter school legislation in 1992, according to SanDiego District Attorney Summer Stephan.“Controller Cohen didn’t hesitate to take action to seal the cracks thatwere exposed by our successful prosecution of this widespread charterschool scam,” Stephan said. “Thanks to the task force, we are ensuringthat moving forward, criminals will not be able to perpetrate large-scalescams that previously took advantage of California taxpayers, parents,and students.”The task force report is broken down into four categories. Cohen andtask force members recommended a Certified Public Accountant (CPA)authorization, qualifications, training, and K-12 Audit GuideCompliance; rotation of CPAs and notifications of late audit reports; K-12 audit guide; and disclosures of audit reports.As the chief fiscal officer of California, Cohen is responsible foraccountability and disbursement of the state’s financial resources. The
Controller has independent auditing authority over government agenciesthat spend state funds.“This accomplishment and the next actions that will be taken ensureaccountability, transparency, and the significant investment in educationthat the state of California makes to our children,” Cohen said of the taskforce’s duties
