OpenCdA has written several posts about the alleged corruption of city officials in Bell, California.

Some of the nagging questions are, “Didn’t the State require independent audits of Bell’s books?  If so, why didn’t the auditors question such things as the  ‘secret formula the public could never find out’ ?  Since the public ultimately pays for the City’s audit, isn’t the public entitled to a diligent independent audit rather than one designed by the alleged crooks to conceal financial mismanagement?”

To get an answer, OpenCdA contacted Jeff Gottlieb, one of the Los Angeles Times’ two principal reporters covering the Bell scandal story.  Mr.  Gottlieb had, in fact, written an article that at least partly answered the nagging questions.  His article was published in the LA Times online on June 2, 2012, and headlined California disciplines accounting firm that missed Bell irregularities.

Apparently the California  Board of Accountancy takes is mission seriously.

ADDENDUM on 11-18/2013:  LA Times reporter Jeff Gottlieb’s article linked above was preceded by one headlined Audits of Bell were ‘rubber-stamp,’ state Controller says.  The earlier article was published by the LA Times online on December 22, 2010, and included these indictments of the City of Bell’s independent auditors, Mayer Hoffman McCann (MHM):

“The long-awaited report is being closely watched because Mayer Hoffman McCann audits the books of dozens of government agencies in California and has 30 offices nationwide.”

“The controller’s office found that MHM failed to comply with 13 of 17 “fieldwork auditing standards” when reviewing Bell’s books in the 2008-09 fiscal year. The firm focused mostly on comparing financial numbers year to year rather than looking at potential for inappropriate or illegal activities, the controller’s report said.”