South Carolina has collected about $1.8 billion in a bank account over the past decade, and state and private accountants are trying to figure out where the cash came from and where it was supposed to go. "It's like going into your bank and the bank president tells you we have a lot of money in our vault but we just don't know who it belongs to," said Republican Sen. Larry Grooms, who is leading a Senate panel investigating the matter. It's the latest trouble with the state's books and the two agencies, typically led by elected officials, that are in charge of making sure government accounts stay balanced, the AP reports.
Last year, the elected Republican comptroller general—the state's top accountant—resigned after his agency started double posting money in higher education accounts, leading to a $3.5 billion error that was all on paper. The problem started as the state shifted computer systems in the 2010s. The latest issue appears to involve actual cash and elected Republican Treasurer Curtis Loftis, whose job is to write state checks. Investigative accountants are trying to untangle the mess, but it appears that every time the state's books were out of whack, money was shifted from somewhere into an account that helped balance things out, Senate leaders have said.
"Politics really shouldn't come into play. People prefer their accountants not be crusaders," Grooms said Tuesday after the Senate approved putting a constitutional amendment before voters to make the comptroller general an appointed position. The proposal now goes to the House, per the AP. Grooms suggested that an amendment to make the treasurer appointed as well might be next unless there are satisfactory answers. Whatever caused the bank errors has not been rectified, and if there are records showing where the $1.8 billion came from, they have not been shared with state leaders. "It does not inspire confidence," Republican Gov. Henry McMaster said.
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