Auditor General of British Columbia
Incumbent
Michael Pickup
since July 25, 2020
AbbreviationOAGBC
Reports toLegislative Assembly of British Columbia
AppointerGovernor in Council
Term length8 years non-renewable
Constituting instrumentAuditor General Act
Office of the Auditor General of British Columbia
Agency overview
Formed1977
HeadquartersVictoria, British Columbia, Canada
Employees120
Annual budget$18.2 million
(2018)[1]
Websitehttps://oag.bc.ca

The Auditor General of British Columbia is an independent Officer of the Legislature of British Columbia, responsible for conducting audits of the government reporting entity (GRE) which consists of ministries, Crown corporations, and other government organizations such as universities, colleges, school districts, health authorities, and similar organizations that are controlled by or accountable to the provincial government. Independence is a vital safeguard for fulfilling the Auditor General's responsibilities objectively and fairly based solely on the evidence found while conducting proper audit procedures. For this reason, the Auditor General reports directly to the Legislative Assembly and not the government of the day. [2]

The Office of the Auditor General of British Columbia (OAGBC) is located in Victoria, B.C., Canada.

History

Auditors General in B.C.

The position of Auditor General in B.C. was first filled in 1861, with a continuous line of auditors general until 1917. However, these auditors did not benefit from objectivity and independence from government direction and operational priorities: qualities that are the distinguishing features of a modern auditing and legislative reporting function.[3]

The position was re-established in 1977 with the Auditor General Act, brought in by the government of the day to "fill a gap that has existed in British Columbia up to this time," according to then-Finance Minister E.M. Wolfe.[4]

Since then, the Auditor General has been governed solely by the Auditor General Act. Per the Act, the Legislative Assembly must unanimously appoint a person to be the Auditor General. The Auditor General holds office for a non-renewable eight-year term.[5]

The Auditor General can resign from the office at any time by giving written notice to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. The Auditor General can be suspended from office if a resolution is passed by 2/3 or more of the members present in the Legislative Assembly.[6]

List of all B.C. Auditors General

Auditor GeneralAppointment DateDeparture Date
Michael Pickup, FCPA, FCAJuly 27, 2020Present
Russ Jones, MBA, CA^November 26, 2019July 24, 2020
Carol Bellringer, FCASeptember 15, 2014December 31, 2019
Russ Jones, MBA, CA^May 27, 2013September 14, 2014
John Doyle, MAcc, FCAOctober 29, 2007May 27, 2013
Errol Price, FCA, CMC^June 4, 2007October 28, 2007
Arn Van Iersel, FCGA^June 7, 2006June 1, 2007
Wayne Strelioff, FCAMarch 1, 2000May 2, 2006
George L. Morfitt, FCAJanuary 1, 1988January 1, 2000
Robert J. Hayward, CA^January 1, 1986January 1, 1988
Erma P. Morrison, FCASeptember 1, 1977,January 1, 1986
William AllisonApril 1, 1913January 1, 1917
John A. AndersonDecember 1, 1900April 1, 1913
James McBride SmithJanuary 1, 1880January 1, 1900
John J. Austin^January 1, 1879January 1, 1880
W.C. Berkely^^March 4, 1873January 1, 1878
Thomas R. Holmes^September 1, 1871February 1, 1873
Robert KerAugust 31, 1861September 1, 1871

^Acting Auditor General ^^Audit Clerk

Present day

Current Auditor General

The current Auditor General of British Columbia is Michael Pickup. Mr. Pickup was appointed as the Auditor General of British Columbia in July 2020. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Pickup was the Auditor General of Nova Scotia from 2014 to 2020.

Office of the Auditor General

Quick Facts

Fiscal 2013/14:[7]

  • Budgeted Costs: $16.07M
  • Actual Costs: $15.34M
  • Full-time equivalent staff: 107
  • Auxiliary staff: 7
  • Number of staff with accounting designations: 52
  • Number of staff with graduate degrees: 28
  • Other professional accreditations: 46
  • Financial audit reports completed: 43
  • Other reports and publications: 17

Training Office

The OAGBC is a recognized Chartered Accountant Training Office, meeting the profession's Practical Experience Requirements of providing audit, assurance and taxation hours.[8]

The OAGBC also participates in the Canadian Comprehensive Auditing Foundation's international programs, which provides performance audit training for developing audit offices in a variety of countries.[9]

Work Performed

Financial Audit

The Auditor General is mandated to "report each year, in accordance with generally accepted auditing and assurance standards, to the Legislative Assembly on the financial statements of the government reporting entity (GRE)."[10] The GRE includes government ministries, Crown corporations, trusts, colleges, school districts, universities, health authorities and other public entities.[11] The audited Summary Financial Statements in 2013/2014 represented $44 billion in expenses, $44 billion in revenue and $82 billion in assets.[12]

The Auditor General is not required to audit each of these organizations individually, but must develop a Financial Statement Audit Coverage Plan detailing the Office's level of involvement in the audit.[13]

Performance Audit

Under Section 11(8) of the Auditor General Act, the Auditor General is also mandated to report on anything else that they consider should be brought to the attention of the Legislative Assembly.[14] This empowers the Auditor General to conduct performance audits, which look at the management of programs, services and resources.[15] These audits are conducted using a different process than financial audits.

Governance & Accountability

The OAGBC's third stated focus is auditing governance and accountability issues within three main areas: public sector governance, performance reporting and assurance on performance reporting.[16] Reports on these issues can be found in their own section of the OAGBC's website.[17]

References

  1. ↑ "Annual Report 2019/20" (PDF). Office of the Auditor General of British Columbia.
  2. ↑ "FAQs | Auditor General of British Columbia".
  3. ↑ "Auditors General Present & Past | Auditor General of British Columbia".
  4. ↑ "Hansard -- Thursday, May 27, 1976 -- Afternoon Sitting". Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2010-12-30.
  5. ↑ "Auditor General Act".
  6. ↑ "Auditor General Act".
  7. ↑ "Annual Report and Financial Statements 2013/14 | Auditor General of British Columbia".
  8. ↑ "Become a CA". www.becomeaca.com. Archived from the original on 2009-09-12.
  9. ↑ http://www.ccaf-fcvi.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=59&Itemid=53&lang=en
  10. ↑ "Auditor General Act".
  11. ↑ "What does the OAG audit? | Auditor General of British Columbia". Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  12. ↑ "Annual Report and Financial Statements 2013/14 | Auditor General of British Columbia".
  13. ↑ "Financial Statement Audit Coverage Plan | Auditor General of British Columbia".
  14. ↑ "Auditor General Act".
  15. ↑ "Performance Audit FAQs | Auditor General of British Columbia". Archived from the original on 2010-09-02. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  16. ↑ "Services | Auditor General of British Columbia". Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  17. ↑ "Publications: Governance & Accountability". BC Auditor. Archived from the original on October 14, 2010. Retrieved April 29, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
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