Watch All Shows Victor Davis Hanson Tony Kinnett Daily Signal Signal Sitdown

Watch All Shows Victor Davis Hanson Tony Kinnett Daily Signal Signal Sitdown

Home – State Politics & News – 13 States Failed Basic Financial Audits—Here Are the 7 Biggest Red Flags

13 States Failed Basic Financial Audits—Here Are the 7 Biggest Red Flags

State auditors across the country were unable to verify billions of dollars in unemployment spending, Medicaid payments, and pension obligations in federally-funded programs, according to a new report by a government watchdog group.

The findings in the 2026 Financial Transparency Score report, released by the government watchdog Truth in Accounting, found that 13 states failed to earn clean audit opinions. The report comes as the Trump administration is cracking down on how states are spending federal dollars.

The organization used data from annual comprehensive financial reports, or ACFRs, produced by each state as a requirement for getting federal funding.

The biggest culprits of the unlucky 13 states, according to the analysis, were Delaware and Georgia, as auditors were unable to obtain enough evidence to issue an opinion at all. This is a “disclaimer” in audit terms.

Seven other states received a “qualified” audit opinion, which indicates auditors identified issues significant enough to limit their assurance over a state’s financial condition. Four other states didn’t adequately track pension spending, according to the Truth in Accounting analysis.

In response to reports of widespread fraud in several states, the White House has launched an anti-fraud task force, while the Justice Department has launched an anti-fraud division to track misspent federal tax dollars.

SCOTUS Takes a Pass on Case Tied to Hunter Biden Laptop

SCOTUS Delivers 8-1 Blow to AT&T, Verizon in $100M FCC Case

Michigan Voters Say They’re Sick of Mass Muslim Migration 

“If these guys are looking for fraud, these audits would be a roadmap,” Sheila A. Weinberg, CEO of Truth in Accounting, told The Daily Signal. “If you want to look for waste and fraud, these audits will point you in the right direction.”

“These states don’t know whether they should or shouldn’t pay these benefits. How much is fraud?” Weinberg added. “We don’t know. The problem is that these state governments don’t investigate.”

The Daily Signal reached out to the governors’ offices and relevant agency offices in each of the states identified in the report.

Here are........

© The Daily Signal