HARRISBURG, Pa. – Timothy L. DeFoor today was sworn in for a second term as Pennsylvania’s Auditor General. During his inaugural speech, Auditor General DeFoor reflected on the past four years and highlighted his department’s successes since he took office.
“I strive to be a leader who does the job the way it is supposed to be done—someone who draws conclusions based on facts, not politics, and serves the people of Pennsylvania by improving government, not tearing it down,” Auditor General DeFoor said. “In the four years since I have been Auditor General, I have held onto those principles, because I truly believe in the purpose of this office.”
In his first term, Auditor General DeFoor worked to transform and modernize the department through technology upgrades; piloting risk-based auditing processes to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of audits; and creating job opportunities with the department through programs such as the ‘Intern to Hire’ initiative.
“My first term was about building a foundation—one rooted in transformation, accountability, continued improvement and service to the community,” DeFoor said. “We built a stronger workforce that relied on institutional knowledge, while giving the next generation opportunities. This foundation is important because it will last long after my administration is over. It is something for future administrations to build on and improve upon.”
Over the last four years, Auditor General DeFoor’s department performed nearly 4,000 legally required audits per year. His office also conducted several high-profile performance audits to determine how state government programs are working and to ensure tax dollars are being spent the way they should. These audits found ways to prevent fraud within the state’s lottery system; transformed how the department audits schools to make sure the most impactful issues were being addressed, such as how schools are using tax dollars; and looked at how some pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, in the Medicaid system are putting independently owned pharmacies out of business, leaving Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable populations at-risk.
Auditor General DeFoor also made it a priority in his first term to raise awareness about the need for financial literacy education in Pennsylvania. He launched his ‘Be Money $mart’ initiative to help everyone understand essential financial principles, and pledged to continue this work to help build the next generation of financially secure Pennsylvanians.
“As Auditor General, I have seen firsthand how a lack of financial education and awareness can lead to an often-unintentional financial crisis hurting our communities. It became clear to me that financial literacy is an important foundation for every Pennsylvanian to have, starting with our youth from kindergarten through 12th grade,” Auditor General DeFoor said. “We must ensure that financial literacy is taught in every school in Pennsylvania, starting as early as kindergarten.”
For more information about the Department of the Auditor General, our audits or Be Money $mart, visit www.paauditor.gov and follow us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and LinkedIn.
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Media Contacts:
April Hutcheson, Dept. of the Auditor General, 717-787-1381 or news@paauditor.gov