SPRINGFIELD | Gov. Rod Blagojevich's budget cuts may hamper efforts to uncover waste and mismanagement within his own administration.
Among the $463 million vetoed out of the state budget Thursday was nearly $1 million from the auditor general's office, which has tracked numerous examples of questionable spending by agencies under the governor's control.
In January, for example, the office released a report that helped determine how the governor's frequent plane trips between Chicago and Springfield cost taxpayers.
Auditor General William Holland said Friday the cuts could result in a slowdown in the number of audits his office can conduct this year.
"It was a significant reduction to our operations," Holland said. "Certainly there is a challenge there."
In addition to providing information about the operation of state airplanes, Holland's office found in 2005 that an agency charged with saving the state money had handed out contracts to politically connected firms that then used taxpayer funds to buy sports tickets, hotel room service and expensive dinners.
Holland said it would be "unfortunate" if the governor's decision to cut his budget was motivated by his audits.
"I would hope not because all I do is report what I find," Holland said. "I don't have an agenda. I don't have a political agenda. I don't have a programmatic agenda. I don't fall one way or another on any of this."
The governor's budget office said cuts to the auditor general's office were in line with what the governor did with other constitutional officers. In essence, Blagojevich attempted to eliminate General Assembly spending increases.
"The revised appropriation brings the appropriation for the current fiscal year in line with historical spending," said Justin DeJong, spokesman for the governor's budget office.
State Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon, who sits on the Legislative Audit Commission, which reviews Holland's work, said he is suspicious of the cuts because Blagojevich could benefit if there are fewer audits skewering his administration.
"The single most prominent beneficiary of the auditor general not being able to do the work as quickly as he might otherwise is the governor," said Righter.
-- Kurt Erickson can be reached at kurt.erickson@lee.net or (217) 789-0865.
