DC Auditor: CFO's office made 301 reserve fund payouts without legal authority
An April 22, 2026 audit by the Office of the DC Auditor found that the Office of the Chief Financial Officer allocated $2.349 billion from the District's Contingency Reserve to agencies outside the budget process from FY2018 to FY2023, and that all 301 allocations were made without legal authority. Thirteen allocations raised agency budgets after the fiscal year had ended, typically because the agency had overspent, which the Auditor said obscured violations of the District's Anti-Deficiency Act. About $64 million went to purposes not shown to be nonrecurring or unforeseen. In written comments, CFO Glen Lee's office disagreed with eight findings, agreed with one and agreed in part with two; the Auditor declined to revise the report. The matter was referred through the Attorney General to the Board of Review for Anti-Deficiency Violations, which questioned the Auditor in July 2026.
Her independent office concluded that Mr. Lee made 301 withdrawals from contingency funds to circumvent a city law that bars agencies from exceeding their Council-approved budgets.
We found that the Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) unlawfully allocated Contingency Reserve funds retroactively after the end of four fiscal years which served to mask violations of the District's Anti-Deficiency Act.
In other words, an antideficiency violation is not cured by appropriating additional funds to an agency that has already overspent its budget.
Disagreed with eight of the Auditor's findings, agreed with one and agreed in part with two.
Argued his office may use the Contingency Reserve unless a law expressly prohibits it, per the Auditor's summary.
No outcome recorded yet.