From the Indianapolis Star:
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The auditor's office said Friday that a clerical mistake resulted in Indiana counties getting erroneous excise tax distributions, with 34 counties getting underpaid by a total of $536,000 and some counties getting overpaid by that amount.
Erin Sheridan, spokeswoman for the office of state Auditor Tim Berry, said that about $20 million in excise tax money is distributed monthly to counties, though the amount each county receives varies by month.
"The girl who did the transfers used last month's information," Sheridan said.
The employee caught the error but only after the automatic cash transfers to the counties had begun. As a result, Marion County was paid $19,117.49 too much. Shelby County also was overpaid by $10,628.61, as was Boone County, by $8,898.35.
Other area counties were underpaid: Hamilton by $43,649.25, Hancock by $25,008.04, Hendricks by $22,539.32 and Johnson by $16,467.54.
"Counties that we paid too much to, we're asking them to write us a check back," Sheridan said. "Counties that we owe money to, we're going to go ahead and issue them the amount that they are owed."
That money is expected to be distributed by the middle of next week.
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On Friday, Senate Minority Leader Vi Simpson, D-Ellettsville, and House Minority Leader B. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, said such errors "are becoming all too common."
"This is just another example of a system lacking thorough and comprehensive oversight," they said in a joint statement.
They urged the state to broaden the scope of the audit "to all fiscal offices to ensure that local governments are given accurate, timely budgeting information." They also called on lawmakers to exercise oversight of the executive branch.
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2012204280320
