* The Tribune has published yet another editorial about its “solutions” for higher education. Here’s one bit…
Pause to let that sink in: Nearly half of public school students spurn the universities their own families’ tax dollars built, and support, in order to leave Illinois — often just across the border to Wisconsin, Indiana and Iowa. Some flee farther: The University of Alabama is a much more popular destination for Chicago-area kids than you’d imagine.
Those states have invested big bucks in their schools’ infrastructure, something that the Trib is skeptical about doing in Illinois…
That’s why you get so much unimaginative overlap, such as both Eastern Illinois University and Western Illinois now in line to get $100 million science buildings. The rationale is that both schools need new science buildings … to continue doing business as usual. Never mind that, at both universities, enrollment has plummeted.
Um, maybe enrollment is plummeting partly because the state hasn’t made the proper investments? EIU’s current science building is a joke. And the Tribune, remember, was all about the impasse, which just about killed off three or four universities in this state. No planning. Just death. So smart.
Here’s another excerpt…
What should be done to improve school performance and attract more students? Pritzker, a businessman who surely sees that many of the universities have lost their luster, can demand that they specialize in certain areas of academic focus. Sure, let each offer some courses in all major disciplines, but concentrate upper-level offerings in each field at one or two campuses. Pritzker also can demand answers to questions that boards and administrators always duck: Should some of Illinois’ dwindling universities merge? Given demographic trends, should any of them be mothballed? Should one or two evolve into, say, residential community colleges with two-year career training?
And then…
We asked Nyle Robinson, interim executive director of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, if a rethink is in the cards. We were glad to hear him, too, say the arrival of a new governor “is an obvious time to have such discussions.”
* I emailed the IBHE about Robinson’s comment and the editorial…
One of the things the Tribune suggested in that editorial was merging and/or mothballing universities. Does ED Robinson share that view? What other points does he agree with in that editorial?
* From Nyle Robinson, interim executive director, IBHE…
We are always happy to have a new governor’s interest in higher education. We are particularly pleased with Gov. Pritzker’s commitment to this sector for many reasons, including the fact that the health of a state’s economy is tied to the health of its higher education. The FY 2020 budget was the best for higher education operations since at least FY 02. It also was the best capital program for higher education in decades. However, one good year will not fix the damage of decades of disinvestment. Universities and community colleges received a 5% increase for FY 20. In FY 16 they only received 30% of what they received in FY 15 and the budget impasse ended with a permanent 10% decrease in FY 18.
Those facts must be taken into account when considering what Illinois wants, and needs, its higher education system to be. Community colleges, public universities, and private colleges are constantly reviewing its programs and structures. Coursework is updated, majors and minors change as employment needs shift, and institutions evolve to meet the demands of the workforce and students. College and university staff meet regularly with employers to align coursework with job needs. Unfortunately, during the budget impasse, many colleges and universities were pushed into making the cuts they could make in the short term to lower costs quickly, rather than making strategic choices.
However, a confluence of events makes this an ideal time to look at Illinois higher education system. There being a new Governor who has expressed support for higher education, both in his words and in his deeds. We are in the second year of budget stability and at the start of a six-year capital program, after a long drought in capital support. That will modernize and refresh campuses. Making them more attractive to perspective students.
In addition, the state higher education master plan is ten years old. It is the time modernize it as well. IBHE has started work on a new plan and we have had initial discussions with the Governor’s office about how to best undertake the gathering of input. Everything should be on the table in such a process.
But, as a 33-year veteran of state government, I am skeptical of reorganizations. Reorganizations are certain to cause disruption, but the benefits are less certain. It is easier to envision the upsides than it is to see the barriers. Also, while universities may benefit from highlighting their top programs, the downsides of cutting programs too severely must be considered. While the state is concerned about outmigration, the fact is most students will start school within 100 miles of their home. This is particularly true of poor and minority students, who are making up an ever-increasing portion of the student population and isolating programs in different, possibly remote, portions of a large state will make them inaccessible to older students with jobs and family responsibilities. Just one example, stripping programs from Eastern will only make Indiana schools more attractive, some of them are closer than other Illinois schools. Also, it is better and easier to connect students with jobs close to where they are studying.
Higher education is dynamic and evolving. The workforce is evolving. The student population is evolving. New modes of delivering higher education are becoming more prevalent, and attractive. We believe that reforms of our state system are merited but reorganization is not likely to be the most productive way of responding to the changing landscape. [Emphasis added]
Pretty thoughtful response.
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* Amanda Kass and Andrew Crosby of the UIC’s Government Finance Research Center have published a white paper about local first responder pension funds. They examined 336 municipalities which have 516 police or fire pension funds - about 80 percent of all non-Chicago funds.
They were looking to see if any municipalities were getting around the state “pension intercept” law. From their white paper…
Starting in fiscal year (FY) 2016, the enforcement mechanism allows the State Comptroller to intercept state- sharing revenue if municipalities’ contributions to their police and fire pension funds fall short of what their contributions are supposed to be under state law. That intercepted revenue is then re-directed to the pension systems to make up for the shortfall in governments’ contributions. A premise of the pension intercept is that state intervention can help ensure the fiscal sustainability of local governments and their retirement funds.
They found that most municipalities appeared to be making their statutorily required pension payments. But they found 22 which looked hinky. After obtaining information from those municipalities, they came to this conclusion…
We found that while the majority (14 municipalities) were indeed shorting their pension funds, only two municipalities had state-sharing revenue intercepted: Harvey and North Chicago.
Not good. If the state takes no action, the problems in those municipalities are going to only get worse.
* I followed up with Ms. Kass to ask if there could be more than 14 municipalities shorting their pension funds…
Hi Rich:
Shorter answer: There could be more, but it’s really difficult to determine without collecting data from all municipalities. I don’t have confidence is coming up with a specific estimate. I would say that for 2016 there were 163 municipalities whose actual contributions look like they were less than 100% than the IDOI recommendation. That alone, however, does not indicate those municipalities shorted their pension funds, but that is the number of places I’d examine to see if they did short. I just want to be careful about the language.
Long explanation: We compared municipalities actual contributions to IDOI’s recommended contribution, which we defined as a “payment ratio.” A payment ratio of 1 means that a municipality’s actual contribution equaled the IDOI recommendation; less than 1 means the contribution was less than the IDOI recommendation. The 22 we looked at had average payment ratios below 0.5 for some time between 2005 and 2016, so these seemed like the most extreme cases of shorting.
Out of the 336 municipalities, there are 163 municipalities that had a payment ratio of less than 1 for 2016; however, I can’t provide a good estimate of how many of those shorted. Out of that pool of 163, 60 have payment ratios of 0.9 or above. The payment ratio being below 1 could be because the municipality hired an actuary and that actuary’s recommended contribution was less than IDOI; it could be because the municipality’s actual payment is not aligned with the correct IDOI recommendation; or it could be because the municipality shorted. Many may have hired their own actuary and not used IDOI, but information about whether a municipality or pension fund hires its own actuary doesn’t seem to be collected by IDOI (at least not in a spreadsheet or easy to use way). For the 22 municipalities we looked at, only five used IDOI’s recommendation.
The 3rd party actuaries’ figures varied widely from the IDOI recommendations, and the difference between IDOI and the 3rd party actuary was not consistent over time even for the same municipality. Because of this we couldn’t even identify a likely lower boundary for the payment ratio–meaning coming up with a cutoff point for payment ratios less than 1 to distinguish between likely shorting and just difference between 3rd party actuary and IDOI). This is why we limited to just looking at the most extreme cases (the 22 municipalities).
Pension funds can trigger the intercept for any shortfall in the actual contribution. Chicago’s contributions to its pension systems for 2018 (per the information in its CAFR) were only about 2% less than required, but the systems have still triggered the intercept against the City.
Amanda
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Question of the day
Friday, Jul 12, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Block Club Chicago…
As animal experts deploy a new strategy to try to capture and rescue the elusive alligator in Humboldt Park, concern is rising over the reptile’s health.
After several days of occasional sightings, the approximately 5-foot-long American alligator hasn’t been seen in more than 24 hours. […]
“We’ve gone 24 hours without a confirmed sighting of the animal. I’m not gonna speculate, but you guys will anyway,” [Alligator Bob] told reporters. “He could’ve been sick or injured when they threw him in here. … ‘Oh, I fed him something and he’s poison and he’s not eating. Oh, I dropped something and broke his back. Oh, I stabbed him when he bit me.’ There’s 100 things.
“We might be looking for a carcass. The water temperature is 74 degrees, just like any other body, it’ll come floating to the surface. But I’m not saying he’s dead. He’s just missing.”
* Sun-Times…
A new strategy emerged on day four of alligator watch at the Humboldt Park Lagoon: Playing recordings of baby alligators.
Herpetologist “Alligator Bob” said Friday he plans to use a device that mimics the sound of baby alligators in hopes of luring the alligator.
The strategy has worked “very well” with wild alligators in Southern states, Bob said, but the Humboldt Park gator was probably raised in captivity.
“We’re not putting a lot of success in it,” Bob said. “It’s worked well in the wild, but we don’t know if it’ll work here.”
* The Question: Are you rooting for the alligator or for Alligator Bob? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please…
online polls
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Today’s quotable
Friday, Jul 12, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Chicago Sun-Times…
[Chicago police officers] arrested a total of 84,717 people in 2018 compared with 82,663 in 2017, a 2 percent increase, according to the Chicago Police Department. […]
So far this year, felony arrests have continued to rise, according to the police. There were 47,467 arrests through Sunday compared with 43,831 over the same period of 2018, an 8 percent rise.
Still, in 2009, there were 181,254 arrests. The police department’s arrest totals had steadily decreased year after year until 2018.
Martin Preib, second vice-president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said, “A central factor in the decline of arrests is the false vilification of the police by the activist media.”
Um, what? Is this an admission by the union of a police slowdown?
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* Background from Marni Pyke…
There’s only one consensus on extending Route 53 into Lake County and that is — the issue has dragged on for many years.
Since the 1970s, the project has been studied multiple times, analyzed to death in myriad committees and voted on in a 2009 referendum where residents said yes.
This month will mark another turning point. The Lake County Board could put the Route 53 extension on the back burner at a meeting Tuesday.
If they do, the Illinois tollway — the latest entity to carry the Route 53 torch — might announce it’s pulling the plug on a related $25 million environmental study this month.
The fight over the extension into Lake County has been raging since the early 1960s. And the Lake County Board did, indeed, put the route extension on the back burner this week.
* Today…
Three recently elected Democratic County Board Members are praising the Pritzker Administration’s decision today to end the most recent study of the long-controversial Route 53 extension. Moving on from this project after nearly 60 years of uncertainty will allow Lake County to better explore comprehensive, 21st Century solutions to our transportation needs.
Jessica Vealitzek (D-Hawthorn Woods) said, “I applaud the decision by the Tollway Authority. There are many things we can do to relieve congestion in Lake County, but extending one road for $3 billion isn’t the solution. It’s going to take more than that–a 21st-century, comprehensive transportation plan.”
Julie Simpson (D-Vernon Hills) said “I want to thank Governor Pritzker, the Tollway board, and everyone who fought along side us to put this environmentally devastating, fiscally irresponsible, archaic project to bed. We will now be able to move forward with a modern transportation plan to address the many infrastructure needs that have been held hostage for the last 50+ years.”
Adam Didech (D-Buffalo Grove) said “We’re finally free of a 60-year-old albatross. This decision, coupled with the Governor’s successful capital bill, puts Lake County on a path toward modern, comprehensive solutions to our transportation needs. I’m glad we’ll be moving forward with consensus projects like the Route 22 expansion.”
All 3 Democratic members were elected to the Board in 2018, replacing long-time Republican supporters of the now-scuttled project.
* Press release…
The Village of Hawthorn Woods thanks Illinois Tollway Executive Director José Alvarez for terminating this latest round of studies on the controversial Route 53 Extension. This decision appears to recognize that the same conditions that have derailed every other bid to extend Route 53 – a glaring lack of political consensus in support of the project and a chronic shortage of funds to build it – remain facts of life today.
We hope that this decision represents the permanent demise of the proposed extension, so that Lake County can begin efforts to make the transportation improvements that we can all agree on. Those concepts include arterial lane widenings, grade separations where roads cross railroads, and enhanced commuter rail service. After all, these common-sense and cost-effective improvements to the Lake County’s transportation system have languished for decades, while one futile effort after another was mounted to extend Route 53.
In the wake of this decision, we call on the Tollway, the Illinois Department of Transportation, and the Federal Highway Administration to decommission the Route 53 corridor and work with relevant state and local agencies to convert it into a permanent greenway for public recreational use and environmental stewardship.
Dating back to when the state first proposed the extension in the 1960s, it has spent massive sums of money on repeated studies of the project and land purchases linked to its right-of-way. And each time, those efforts resulted in the same outcome: An admission that there is too much opposition, too little money, and to great of a negative impact to the environment to warrant the continued studies of the project. And all that time, Lake County commuters remained mired in traffic congestion that could have been eased through other avenues.
After six decades, the record is clear: Grassroots opposition to the project is staunch; money to build it is too scarce; and the irreparable damage it would inflict on Lake County’s treasured, but fragile, natural areas is severe.
Let’s put our roadbuilders to work now, instead of lining the pockets of consultants with millions of dollars that could be invested in our infrastructure. With this decision in place, Lake County can finally advance our local plan to effectively relieve traffic congestion, protect the beauty of its landscape, and enhance our collective quality of life.
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*** UPDATE *** Good…
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* WIFR TV…
As Rockford’s push for a casino continues, at least one proposal appears to be in the works.
On Tuesday, Hard Rock International CEO Jim Allen and Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen plan to announce the proposed development of Hard Rock Casino in Rockford.
Allen and Nielsen will be at the former Clock Tower Resort at 7801 E. State Street. The announcement is expected around noon.
Nielsen has traveled to Springfield on behalf of his city at least a couple of times. Not sure if many people knew he was hoping to open a casino. But, hey, that looks like a pretty cool combination.
* Meanwhile…
Nevada hopes to be the first state to create its own banking system for the booming marijuana industry, which has generated more than $150 million in tax revenue since 2017, according to Nevada Treasurer Zach Conine’s office.
Since the drug is still illegal under federal law, most banks won’t accept cannabis businesses as clients. As a result, the multimillion-dollar industry is mainly a cash business — at least for now.
Under a three-year pilot program, Nevada will allow marijuana businesses and consumers to deal in electronic tokens. The system will work much the same way as in in casinos, where players buy and bet with chips. “You exchange cash for casino chips and those chips transfer around the casino,” says Conine. “At the end, you convert them back into cash.”
The initial idea is for consumers and businesses to use an app to buy tokens, which could then be used at any marijuana business or for paying state and local government. Consumers could use them at dispensaries. Dispensaries could use those tokens to pay growers, who in turn could use tokens to pay a tax bill to the state. At that point, the state would convert the tokens back into dollars.
Pretty good idea.
* Related…
* Proposed Ban on Video Gambling Licenses Addition in Lake County Unincorporated Areas Fails
* Rivers Continues To Far Outpace Casino Rivals
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* We’ve already talked a bit about HB3850…
Repeals the Reproductive Health Act. Creates the Illinois Abortion Law of 2019 containing the provisions of the Illinois Abortion Law of 1975 before its repeal by Public Act 101-13, as well as provisions defining “viability” to include when, in the medical judgment of the attending physician based on the particular facts of the case before the attending physician, the unborn child has a fetal heartbeat, and defining “fetal heartbeat” as the cardiac activity or the steady and repetitive rhythmic contraction of the fetal heart within the gestational sac.
* Mark Maxwell dives in…
House Republican Allen Skillicorn, who is mulling a 2020 Congressional campaign, filed the anti-abortion measure in Springfield to respond to what he called “truly appalling legislation.”
Skillicorn, a two-term representative from East Dundee, wrote in a statement, “It is now conceivable that a 14-year old girl lacking parental consent and advanced in her pregnancy could receive an abortion from a ‘health worker’ in a facility lacking minimum medical standards, as practitioner and facility licensing have been revoked. And if she would die due to negligence, no record of the death due to a botched abortion would be reported.”
“That is a complete disregard for reality,” [Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago], who sponsored the bill in the House, said. “[Skillicorn] operates from a position that people are stupid and not smart enough to know the truth.” […]
The measure did also remove the state’s ability to grant special licenses to abortion clinics, but supporters say they did so as a precaution to eliminate so-called “trap laws” that were “put in place to close all abortion clinics,” Cassidy said. By removing the requirement for outpatient abortion clinics to seek a state license, the Reproductive Health Act prevents future legislatures or state agency directors from targeting a facility’s license as a means to revoke access to the procedure, similar to what is currently happening in the state of Missouri.
In this regard, Skillicorn’s hyperbolic hypothetical is a gross over-exaggeration, and not literally true. According to state law, doctors and facilities that perform abortions still have to be licensed medical practitioners and still must meet strict health, safety, and medical guidelines, just as any other surgeon, physician, or hospital have to comply with state and federal safety standards. The change in the law only removes an older provision that added an extra regulatory hurdle specifically for abortion procedures. Some smaller outpatient abortion facilities that provide abortion by injection or by pill may not have to be licensed as surgery centers, but the medical professionals performing the procedures still must be professionally trained and licensed.
Also, mandatory parental consent laws were declared unconstitutional in 1979.
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* The House Republicans have been blogging about Illinois history this year. Here’s their latest…
On Sunday, July 9, 1933, a fire broke out in a store room on the 5th floor of the Capitol’s south wing. It quickly spread to the 6th floor office of the division of oil inspection, and the nearby offices of the division of agriculture and the state supervising architect.
* The fire was eventually extinguished, but only after significant damage had been done by the flames and by the large amount of water used to combat the conflagration. The place was drenched, including the House chambers.
But the story doesn’t end there. An important meeting had been scheduled for the very next day…
Earlier that year, Congress had started the process of adding a 21st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, an amendment which would repeal the 18th Amendment enacting prohibition. Illinois had enthusiastically embraced the cause.
The General Assembly adopted a joint resolution calling for a state convention to meet and discuss ratifying the repeal amendment. In April both houses and the Governor had enacted House Bill 441, setting by law the time and place for the repeal convention to meet: 12 noon, Monday, July 10, 1933, in the House chamber. That is, the very chamber which was now full of water and crumbling, falling plaster.
Elections for delegates to the convention had been held on June 5, and all 50 delegates were members of the “wet” slate, delegates who favored repeal of Prohibition, defeating their “dry” counterparts.
“Before a galaxy of distinguished visitors in the crowded House of Representatives, the 50 wet delegates to the repeal convention formally will place Illinois in the procession of states knocking out the dry paragraphs of the constitution,” the Illinois State Register had predicted on the day of the fire.
They were right about everything but the location.
While water was still dripping into the chamber, the jokes had started floating around: wet chamber, wet delegates.
“The hall had been all arranged for the repeal convention, but became sadly ‘wet’ before its time,” quipped the Journal.
Jokes aside, though, the convention did face a very real problem. The time and place of the convention had been specifically set by law. Convention delegates were arriving in the capital city while the smoke was still rising from the statehouse. The designated location was clearly unsafe. In the hours after the fire, a plan began to come together.
Go read the rest.
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* ABC 7…
The Trump administration is moving forward with a nationwide immigration enforcement operation targeting migrant families, despite loud opposition from Democrats and questions over whether it’s the best use of resources given the crisis at the border.
The operation could happen as soon as this weekend after being postponed by President Donald Trump late last month. It would pursue people with final deportation orders, including families whose immigration cases were fast-tracked by judges in 10 major cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Miami.
* Press release…
In the face of renewed threats from President Trump to conduct immigration raids, Governor JB Pritzker and Attorney General Kwame Raoul reiterated their commitment to working hand in hand to use every tool at their disposal to protect Illinois’ immigrant families.
“Immigrants are an essential part of what makes this country great. In Illinois, we welcome and protect them, despite threats from President Trump,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “In the face of a coordinated attempt by the President to stoke fear, exploit division, and force families into the shadows, Illinois stands as a firewall against the president’s attacks on our immigrant communities. To every hardworking immigrant resident of our great state: Illinois is and always will be a welcoming state for all.”
“Despite what the president would have people believe, every Illinois resident has constitutional rights, regardless of citizenship or immigration status,” said Attorney General Kwame Raoul. “I urge every immigrant to Know Your Rights – the first one being that you do not have to open your door to immigration agents. I also encourage Illinois law enforcement agencies to review my office’s Guidance to Law Enforcement, which details changes to state law, to ensure they do not violate those rights.”
As the state’s chief executive, Gov. Pritzker has directed all state agencies that the state of Illinois will not coordinate with ICE on federal immigration enforcement. In addition, the governor signed two pieces of legislation into law last month that help make Illinois a firewall against President Trump’s attacks.
House Bill 1637
Keep Illinois Families Together Act
HB 1637 prohibits local law enforcement agencies from engaging in federal immigration enforcement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
While local law enforcement agencies in 21 states, including Wisconsin, participate in the 287(g) Program — an ICE program that allows local law enforcement officials to identify and remove undocumented residents from the U.S. — Illinois now statutorily prohibits participation. This bill ensures witnesses of all backgrounds can come forward and report crime to their local police. HB 1637 took effect on June 21, 2019.
House Bill 2040
Private Detention Facility Moratorium Act
HB 2040 bans immigrant detention centers in the state of Illinois, which halted the proposed federally-run center in Dwight, Ill. Specifically, the bill prohibits state, county and local governments from entering any agreement or making any financial transactions with a private detention facility, with an exception for contracts with providers of ancillary services such as medical or food services.
This law made Illinois the first state in the nation to ban private civil detention centers, after the state already banned private criminal detention centers. HB 2040 also took effect on June 21, 2019.
Attorney General’s Office Updated Immigration Guidance
Know Your Rights
The Attorney General’s office has updated its Guidance to Law Enforcement to provide an overview of changes to Illinois laws that include prohibitions on engaging in immigration enforcement. The Attorney General is also reminding immigrant residents and service providers in immigrant communities of the office’s free Know Your Rights resources. The comprehensive materials available in several languages give residents guidance in situations where they are confronted by a police officer or immigration agent in public or at home. A full fact sheet can be found here.
Every resident of Illinois has constitutional rights that protect them if they encounter law enforcement, regardless of their citizenship or immigration status. The Attorney General’s office encourages people to read and carry a Know Your Rights card with them in case they are approached by law enforcement or immigration authorities.
The Attorney General’s office also encourages individuals to contact the office to report instances of discrimination or harassment by calling its Civil Rights Hotline at 1-877-581-3692.
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Audit: DoIT an overspending mess
Friday, Jul 12, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* AP…
An effort by the state of Illinois to consolidate hundreds of separate financial reporting systems has cost $150 million more than estimated.
Auditor General Frank Mautino’s audit of the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology found that the cost of the Enterprise Resource Planning project exceeded the initial five-year, $250 million estimate by 60 percent largely because of an aggressive implementation schedule. It began by tackling 260 separate financial reporting systems.
“It’s running behind and you’ve had cost overruns because of the implementation, they pushed hard in the beginning, which caused conversion problems and implementation problems because it’s trying to do so much,” Mautino said.
The audit found that the current estimated $400 million rollout should cover the rest of the implementation, scheduled for completion early next year. But Mautino noted some of the bigger challenges remain — mega-agencies such as the Department of Human Services and the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, which handle public assistance and Medicaid health care coverage, have yet to come online.
The audit, covering a two-year period that ended in June 2018, found 30 deficiencies. They included the failure to consolidate computer services among all 38 agencies required by a 2016 executive order by former Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, late payment of vendors resulting in $20 million in late-payment interest, shoddy control of inventory and assets, and failure to follow written policies about which personnel have the authority to make such changes as computer coding.
The full audit is here.
* From the synopsis…
Because of the significance and pervasiveness of the findings described within the report, we expressed an adverse opinion on the Department’s compliance with the assertions which comprise a State compliance examination. The Codification of Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements (AT-C § 205.72) states a practitioner “should express an adverse opinion when the practitioner, having obtained sufficient appropriate evidence, concludes that misstatements, individually or in the aggregate, are both material and pervasive to the subject matter.”
Yikes.
* From the Daily Line…
The agency also failed to conduct employee performance evaluations in a timely manner, and failed to submit reports to the state about employee diversity on time, or even at all in the case of the Asian-American Employment Plan Survey for the 2017 fiscal year.
After employees were terminated, many of them kept their state cell phones for weeks, or even months. The audit found that of nine terminated employees sampled for the audit, six of them kept their cell phones for anywhere between 46 to 291 days after the termination of the employee, costing the state $1,576. One of the former employees slipped through the cracks entirely, and DoIT was not aware that the cell service for a terminated employee had been costing the state $52 per month until the auditors notified the agency.
The auditors also noted that some of DoIT’s employees and contractors “had not completed security awareness training or cybersecurity training, completed the annual acknowledgement of compliance with security policies, obtained proper authorization for access rights, or request forms were submitted late, or not properly approved; and removed access rights in a timely manner.”
Additionally, the audit found that 551 laptops and desktops were not up-to-date with the latest anti-virus product and 3,692 were not up-to-date with the latest anti-virus definitions.
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