- “There is no place in the state of North Carolina that deserves accountability more than the city,” Boliek told the audience.
- “No company wants to locate a headquarters or a facility in a state that can't keep its books straight,” Boliek told the audience.
North Carolina State Auditor Dave Boliek said his office will soon release a series of major audits, including reviews of the state Education Lottery, voter-approved bonds, and the UNC system, as part of a broader effort to expand oversight of government spending.
For the first time, the state auditor’s office is reviewing how governments spend money from voter-approved general obligation bonds. Boliek said his office examined about six years of spending and plans to release the results soon.
A complete performance audit of the North Carolina Education Lottery is set to be released in the coming weeks. An earlier audit was released in January.
The next Division of Accountability, Value, and Efficiency (DAVE) report will be on the university system, and how it handles vacancies, and how many hours that tenured professors spend in the classroom.
He also said that about five municipalities and entities in the state are currently under active investigation for potential criminal activity.
Boliek is working with State Treasurer Brad Briner, looking at pensions and long-term liabilities. He is also working with Briner and state Sen. Benton Sawrey, R-Johnston, on transparency in healthcare costs.
Boliek said the state auditor’s office plays a key role in maintaining government accountability through financial oversight of state agencies, universities, and community colleges. The office conducts major reviews such as the state’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the Statewide Single Audit, and other financial statement audits.
In the most recent audit cycle, his office identified about $800 million in adjustments to the North Carolina Department of Commerce’s financial statements, Boliek said.
He added that the office’s oversight work helps support North Carolina’s AAA bond rating, held by only 14 states nationwide, which he said strengthens the state’s financial credibility and economic competitiveness.
“No company wants to locate a headquarters or a facility in a state that can’t keep its books straight,” Boliek told the audience.
In comments to the John Locke Foundation’s recent Carolina Liberty Conference, Boliek said he and his office are focused on the broader vision of the state auditor’s office, modernizing oversight principles, and protecting the taxpayers without stifling growth.
New technology and increased staff
The state auditor’s office is modernizing its operations with new technology and faster reporting timelines after the General Assembly exempted it from oversight by the state Division of Information Technology.
“We no longer have to wait 17 months to get a piece of software approved,” he said, adding that they have been able to add new accounting and auditing software and also have a partnership with Microsoft to work on a generative AI within the department.
Boliek said they are building their own data and analytics and can do more with fewer people, but that doesn’t mean they are getting rid of people. When he first walked into the office on Jan. 2, 2025, there were six people there and who only worked in the office two days a week. Since then, everyone is back in the office five days a week.
Currently, among the staff, there are 58 people in the office working on financial statement audits, 10 working on cybersecurity audits, and 16, up from 2, in the investigative division of the office. And over the past 14 months, 40 have been promoted from within the office.
He spoke in greater depth with Carolina Journal last month about staffing in his office.
In addition, a Rapid Response Division was created to address immediate issues, and it was used to audit financial management failures in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools.
He said his office has also hired people from outside state government, which he feels is key to revamp and recharge the work that needs to be done, that needs a new sense of urgency in government by bringing a fresh perspective.
Boliek cites his NC Division of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) audit as one of his office’s best accomplishments, noting that it is the most comprehensive performance audit conducted by the office of the state auditor in the state’s history.
He also discussed how his office has been tasked with overseeing the State Board of Elections under a provision in Senate Bill 382, which became law and allows the state auditor to make new appointments to the board and assume administrative oversight of it.
That includes the creation of the Modernization of Election Data Systems (MEDS) Commission. The bipartisan, 22-member commission was created to help bring North Carolina’s election management system up to date, including the state’s Election Information Management System (SEIMS), which is scheduled to be updated within the next two years, and Campaign Finance Reporting Software, which is due for an update by July 2027.
Focus on charlotte
Boliek’s office also has a special focus on the City of Charlotte.
In addition to opening a new office in the city, he also mentioned the letter and report that he sent to Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles, along with the city manager and the city council, about a settlement that the city council authorized that exceeded $300,000 to Jennings after he threatened to file a lawsuit for a hostile work environment.
His office had also issued a Rapid Response report about serious concerns about safety on the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) after the murder of 23-year-old Iryna Zarutska.
“There is no place in the state of North Carolina that deserves accountability more than the city,” he told the audience.
Lessons were also learned about how the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency (NCORR) handled disaster recovery after Hurricanes Florence and Matthew, including how the agency spent $27.5 million in taxpayer funds on a computer program they couldn’t use, then switched to an Excel spreadsheet, among other failures.
Boliek said that as the state recovers in western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene, they are being more proactive on how money is spent by using a dashboard to track spending, which he said will become more robust in the next few weeks.
Bonds and the bonding and borrowing of money, local municipalities raising tax rates too high due to property reevaluations and taxing local citizens at very high rates, how tax dollars are utilized in public schools across the state, and entitlement programs are among his top concerns for the state.
Boliek stated that although much has been accomplished in the past year, more work still needs to be done.
“I’m the dog that caught the bus and won the race,” he said. “So it’s time for us to get to work. We’ve been working really hard, and we’ve got a lot more to do, and we’re going to do a lot more.”