News

Morrow County -

State Auditor Mary Taylor announced a fiscal emergency in the Village of Sparta.  The determination was made as a result of a fiscal analysis conducted by the Auditor of State’s office.  Mayor Beverly Snyder requested the fiscal analysis.

“When a local government is having financial difficulty, we want to do what we can to help them improve their situation and restore financial stability as soon as possible,” said Taylor.

A fiscal emergency was declared because the analysis revealed that the village:

• Did not make debt payments for more than 30 days
• Had deficit fund balances of $14,193 as of April 30, 2007

When placed in fiscal emergency, a commission is appointed by the state to help the village regain financial stability.  The commission is responsible for approving a plan that details solutions for eliminating the specific areas of concern noted in the emergency.  The plan should also balance the budget and avoid future deficits. 

The plan must be submitted to the commission by the mayor within 120 days of the commission’s first meeting.

The Ohio Auditor of State’s Office is one of the largest accounting offices in the nation.  The office strives to ensure that all public funds are spent legally and appropriately and works aggressively to root out fraud, waste and abuse in public spending. Taylor encourages anyone suspecting fraud or misspending of public dollars to contact her office toll free at 1-866-FRAUD-OH (1-866-372-8364).

A full copy of the fiscal emergency declaration is available online at http://www.auditor.state.oh.us/AuditSearch/Reports/2007/Sparta_Village_07_FEA_Morrow.pdf