Ellis County Judge John Wray statement on budget anomalies
The following statement was issued by Ellis County Judge John Wray on Thursday, Aug. 27, relating to budget-related anomalies he brought forth during the Ellis County Commissioners' Court recent meeting.
Citizens of Ellis County,
As stated during our most recent Commissioners Court meeting, discrepancies were identified in the tax revenue estimate used for the current county budget. Following the results of the examination conducted by Ellis County’s external audit firm in April, our internal team went back and reviewed past adopted budgets and the tax revenue figures associated with them.
Our review initially indicated that tax revenue may have been underestimated by several million dollars per year, with the potential discrepancy reaching as much as $20 million over a multi-year period. Since then, our internal County Auditor conducted an additional review of the numbers and accounts. Based on her review, the actual amount of tax revenue collected that exceeds budget estimates appears to be approximately $8.3 million dating back to Fiscal Year 2021. In addition, roughly $8 million of tax revenue is delinquent for this same period of time. Combined, these numbers approximate the roughly $20 million indicated by the initial review.
We have reached out to an independent audit firm to conduct an additional investigation and provide an objective review of these discrepancies. We are currently awaiting their proposal and the proposed scope of work. We intend to seek proposals from one or two additional audit firms.
At this point, the information we have reviewed appears to indicate that these discrepancies most likely resulted from human error and understaffing. At this time, there is no evidence that funds were misused or stolen. However, because of the seriousness of this matter, those possibilities must still be fully investigated and ruled out through an independent review.
It is too early to speculate about exactly how the additional revenue was accounted for or spent. Determining this is one of the tasks we are assigning to the outside auditor.
I believe the citizens of Ellis County deserve transparency regarding this situation. My goal is to keep you informed throughout this process as we learn more. We will continue to work with our County Auditor, Commissioners Court, and independent audit professionals to understand what occurred, determine where the discrepancies originated, and ensure that appropriate steps are taken moving forward.
I appreciate your patience as we work through this process. Most importantly, I want the citizens of Ellis County to know that we are taking this matter seriously and are committed to being open and transparent with you.
Respectfully,
Judge John Wray
Ellis County Judge
