(Columbus, OH) Ohio's auditor is giving local elected officials a lesson in how to properly use credit cards.
State auditor Dave Yost says he's trying to prevent taxpayer ripoffs with a "best practices" newsletter on how to prevent the misuse of government credit and debit cards.
According to Ohio's auditor, unscrupulous government employees have stolen or misused more than $1.2 million since 2011-- using government-issued credit or debit cards to buy big-screen televisions, cars and visits to strip clubs.
The biggest preventable problem-- a survey of 1600 local governments found many don't even have formal policies controlling credit-card use.
Those "best practices" include limiting access, spending limits, requiring detailed receipts, and possibly banning debit cards. There's also a bill pending at the Ohio Statehouse to regulate credit and debit card use by public officials.