Rep. Nikki Haley sponsors Fiscal Accountability Act in the second of a series of reforms to make South Carolina Government More Accountable

Rep. Nikki Haley of Lexington gears up for round two in making South Carolina government more accountable to the people it serves. Following the high profile Spending Accountability Act, Haley introduces the Fiscal Accountability Act with almost 20 co-sponsors. In a time when South Carolina’s state budget is seeing dramatic cuts after years of government growth, it is imperative that state government spend tax dollars wisely.

The Fiscal Accountability Act would establish a legislative committee that would be responsible for a zero based budgeting approach and evaluation of each agency purposely for eliminating outdated inefficient programs. This will call for a full audit evaluation of each agency to ensure the agency’s priorities meet the needs of South Carolinians.

This legislation has two key components. It allows a complete audit of each agency for its efficiency and effectiveness performed by the Legislative Audit Council and also requires legislation must be submitted for each agency reviewed with the audit’s findings that will actively legislate that these archaic programs be eliminated out of the state budget.

“In a time when we are faced with a bleeding budget, this is a great opportunity for state government to go through a cleansing process of all that is no longer a priority to meet the needs of the citizens of South Carolina. My hope is that this will reinforce a conscious level of thinking of each legislator before they add a new program or continue to grow government at the levels we have seen in the past few years. This bill will allow not only for a review of each agency but require legislation be introduced so that there is an action taken upon each review.”

The committee responsible will be made up of three Senate Finance Committee members, three House Ways and Means members, two non Ways and Means House members, and two non Senate Finance members. The review committee will consider the economic, fiscal and outside impacts of the efficiency of each administration. This includes the management process and structure, the extent to which these programs duplicate services, functions, and programs administered by another federal or state agency. The agency of the program will face the challenge of establishing the necessity of each program. This will be required by both the Governor and the General Assembly starting in 2010 to be concluded by 2015. The expense of the audit will be incurred by the agency with no additional funds.

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