Senators Find DPNR Budget Questionable

Sen. Donna Frett-Gregory, chair of the Committee on Budget, Appropriations, and Finance, had the same message for Department of Planning and Natural Resources Commissioner Jean Pierre Oriol on Tuesday as she has for several agencies appearing before her committee this month: The numbers don’t add up.

Senators refer to three primary documents at a budget hearing. The Post Audit report is prepared in-house for the senators. The Budget Book is prepared by the Governor’s Office. (It can be seen here.) The third document is the written testimony of the agency head.

Senators often base their questions on the Post-Audit report, which usually catches the agency off guard because the agency has not had a chance to review it, only receiving it upon their arrival at the hearing.