The same control broke in three separate offices
Kern County’s December 31, 2025 accountability report summarizes purchase-card audits and follow-ups in the District 2, District 4 and District 5 supervisors’ offices. County policy requires transactions to be certified within 45 days and reviewed by an approving official.
District 2’s original review found 36 of 66 transactions certified on time and 14 not reviewed. District 4 found 23 of 59 late. District 5 found 9 of 31 late and eight unreviewed. These are separate audit populations, not one countywide sample.
| Office | Population | Published exception |
|---|---|---|
| District 2 | 66 transactions | 36 timely; 14 unreviewed |
| District 4 | 59 transactions | 23 late |
| District 5 | 31 transactions | 9 late; 8 unreviewed |
The follow-ups did not show durable compliance
Six months later, the District 2 follow-up reported only 17% certified on time and separately printed 87% as late or not verified. Those shares total 104%, an internal arithmetic inconsistency in the county report that prevents a clean reconstruction without transaction-level data.
District 4’s follow-up tested two transactions and found neither verified. District 5’s follow-up tested 14 and reported 43% timely and 57% late. Small follow-up populations—especially two transactions—should not be generalized beyond the reviewed period.
The missing public control is a reconciled exception ledger
A transparent follow-up should publish the number of transactions tested, the count in each mutually exclusive status, the oldest outstanding item and the date management cleared it. Percentages that do not sum to 100% obscure whether categories overlap or the report contains a typographical error.
The repeated finding across three independently managed offices establishes that the 45-day control was not consistently operating in those reviewed periods. It does not establish misuse of any particular purchase.
Method and limits
What’s the Scoop With Broach transcribed the county’s original and follow-up results, checked the printed percentage arithmetic and kept each office’s sample separate. No cardholder names or transaction descriptions were inferred.
The report is a December 31, 2025 snapshot. Its cited remediation dates have since passed, but the accessible record does not prove whether later testing achieved compliance.
Sources and further reading
Kern County Compliance and Accountability Report, December 31, 2025 ↗