Fitzpatrick begins audit of Missouri Department of Conservation

An audit is underway of the Missouri Department of Conservation.

State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick says he wants to provide an “additional layer of accountability” in the wake of a Missouri Supreme Court ruling. 

The High Court ruled last year that the legislature does not have the authority to tell the Conservation Department how it can spend its money. 

In a statement, Fitzpatrick says the ruling has given the Department of Conservation “unprecedented autonomy” over how it spends its 215-million-dollar budget. 

He also says his audit will review how effectively the department is spending taxpayer dollars “to accomplish its mission.”