UPDATED: 2/12/20 8:33AM Dallas (WBAP/KLIF) – The Dallas ISD internal chief auditor is not taking an early performance review of his work lightly.
Chief auditor Steve Martin defended himself in front of school board trustees, after his job came under review following two audits that show the district overpaid more than 300-thousand dollars on construction projects.
Martin also previously reported to the board that additional overpayments could be in the millions.
WATCH the full hearing below here.
Original post: 2/11/2020
Dallas (WBAP/KLIF) – Seems there’s a controversy brewing at Dallas ISD over alleged overpayments found by the district’s chief internal auditor; and, now the auditor is facing an abrupt performance review later today, according to WFAA-TV.
Steven Martin — who was just hired last year after the ouster of the previous internal auditor — reportedly found potential construction contract overpayments of over 333-thousand dollars, with a potential for millions more.
Martin told a board trustee in an email that he “believes district officials are trying to cover up the violations of law and policy.”
The district spokeswoman said that the administration works closely with the board to ensure compliance.
In response, Dallas ISD media contact Robyn Harris wrote:
“The administration works closely with the Board to ensure audits are reviewed and actions are taken to ensure compliance with all applicable laws and Board policies.”
Harris said the maintenance department that was the subject of the two recent audits has been disbanded and “many of the individuals cited in the audits no longer are employed by the district.”
In her statement, Harris said a Procurement Compliance Committee — established last year following several WFAA stories of contract irregularities — has made “referrals to law enforcement.”
The performance review is slated for (this) Tuesday morning.
(Copyright 2020 WBAP/KLIF 24/7 News. This report contains material from the WFAA-TV)
