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COLUMBUS – A finding for recovery of $4,947 was issued Tuesday against the former treasurer of the Tuscarawas County Agricultural Society for penalties and fees that resulted from late payments, Auditor of State Keith Faber announced.

Joshua Carlisle and his bonding company are jointly and severally liable for the total, which was incurred from late payments of credit card and utility bills and late remittances of payroll withholdings.

The issue was among more than a dozen findings and multiple management letter citations included in an audit of the Agricultural Society’s financial activities from Dec. 1, 2018, through Nov. 30, 2020. 

The full report is available online at via Search Audits (ohioauditor.gov/auditsearch/search.aspx).

The finding for recovery against Carlisle included $2,501 in penalties and interest due to late utility payments and $1,602 in penalties and interest due to continually carrying forward unpaid credit card balances, among other penalties.

Auditors noted, “The repeated incurrence of late fees, penalties, and interest does not serve a proper public purpose and is considered gross negligence.”

In its official response, the Agricultural Society stated that it “is now making every effort to pay all bills on time.”

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The Auditor of State’s office, one of five independently elected statewide offices in Ohio is responsible for auditing more than 5,900 state and local government agencies. Under the direction of Auditor Keith Faber, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies, and promotes transparency in government. 

Public Affairs
Contact: Marc Kovac
press@ohioauditor.gov