State Auditor and Inspector Gary Jones is stepping away from the Oklahoma State Health Department special audit. The Tulsa World’s Randy Krehbiel writes Jones made the decision because of the perception that he might have a vested interest in the Health Department investigation. Jones and acting Health Commissioner Preston Doerflinger had a public “back-and-forth” over the timelines of when officials became aware of how serious the financial mismanagement had become.
Read the Tulsa World story here.
Gary Jones is known for doing the right thing. He is not a favored son of the Okla. Republican Party. He has been outspoken, telling it like it is, never sugar coating the data or his thoughts. This has drawn the ire of many Republican lawmakers over the years. Kudos to Gary Jones.
I am a Republican myself. If I were in the Legislature they wouldn’t like what I have to say either. Corporations are continuously audited, in order to safeguard exactly what we see at the department of health. Why would it be any different in state government?
I understand legislation is pending to change this.