The state auditor is warning local governments that they’re risking taxpayer money if they don’t have policies on employees’ use of debit or credit cards.
Auditor Dave Yost says a third of 5,600 governments responded to his online survey about credit and debit card use, and half said they don’t have guidelines for the employees who use their cards. And Yost says that’s a problem with some communities that have cards with credit limits in the millions.
“Imagine finding on the street a credit card with a $5 million credit limit. Where is that credit card? It ought to be guarded like the crown jewels,” Yost said.
Yost is backing a bill that would require local governments to establish card policies, including who can use them and who can review the purchases, and would ban the use of debit cards except for some law enforcement purposes.