Audits unveil new Jindal-era financial problems: misspent money, shoddy bookkeeping, lost property

http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/article_eef10660-d61d-11e6-8aac-03f820710233.html?sr_source=lift_amplify

(Jindal is no longer Governor of Louisiana - but citizens will remember him for many years to come - This is the reality of "Grovernomics&quot

Financial troubles left behind by Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration continue to surface, with recent audits describing misspent money, shoddy bookkeeping and lost state-owned property.

Over the last few months, Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera's nonpartisan office has documented poor financial management and oversight missteps in state agencies when they were led by Jindal administration officials.

Incorrect unemployment payments were issued as soon as the new computer system went online at the Louisiana Workforce Commission, and thousands of fraud investigations were stalled, according to the report from Purpera's office. The system had such inadequate security that the report warns it could lead to "unauthorized view or theft of unemployment insurance and tax data."

In another wide-ranging review, auditors found extensive financial problems across the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries during the Jindal era, raising questions about millions in spending from 2010 through 2015.

Purpera's office says Gulf oil spill recovery money intended for fish testing instead paid for unnecessary iPads, cameras and boats. Auditors found federal grant dollars paid for a used boat that "appeared to have little or no benefit to the agency." Department-owned guns are missing. Nearly $764,000 was spent on clothing, sponsorships and contracts questioned by auditors.