Senators don’t want CPA qualification removed

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The Senate Rules Committee has decided to return the administration bill which would remove what they feel is a key requirement for the person who will sign off on audits conducted by the Territorial Audit Office. The position is the Territorial Auditor and the Lemanu-Talauega administration wishes to remove the current requirement that the Territorial Auditor be a US Certified Public Accountant or internal auditor.

The Governor’s Chief of Staff Tuimavave Tauapa’i Laupola and Attorney General Fainuulelei Alailima Utu testified on the bill yesterday. According to Tuimavave, this position has been vacant for seven years and previous administrations have not been able to fill it because of the difficulty in attracting a US CPA. He said there were only three locals with this qualification and two are in the private sector while one has moved off island.

Tuimavave said this is the 7th month of the Lemanu-Talauega administration and the Governor felt they needed to hire someone to oversee TAO at this juncture.

He said it was not feasible to recruit a CPA from the US because the salary is not attractive to applicants.

When committee chairman Senator Magalei Logovii asked if they have tried to recruit a Territorial Auditor from off island using networks like the association of CPA’s, the Chief of staff said they haven’t.

Magalei pointed out that the last Territorial Auditor Robert Dantini was recruited through their contacts with the Association of Finance Officers. He said the Dept. of Interior would provide funding for the position.

In his testimony, the Governor’s Chief of Staff said the thinking of the Governor was to hire someone to oversee the office at this time and who would not have to be a US CPA. He elaborated that for the auditing functions of the agency, they would still recruit a qualified accountant to perform those duties.

Several senators including Tuiagamoa, Utu, and Faiivae said the Territorial Auditor position was a key position in the government and they felt that the bill would lower the bar when it should be elevated. They said the federal government would seek audits and if the person signing off on them is not a certified public accountant, those audits will not be accepted.

Attorney General Ala’ilima reiterated the difficulty in attracting US-based CPA’s with the available salary. When asked if he had reviewed the bill before it was submitted, he said no but he has discussed it with the Governor’s counsel.

After an hour long meeting the committee voted to table the bill for now.