Auditors found the Department of Agriculture and Food has begun acting on all three recommendations but has not finished any of them.
10 stories since April 1, 2026
Where things stand
As of November 1, 2026
What is known
Some public colleges paid tenured professors to leave instead of disciplining them, including a $175,000 payment to a professor who repeatedly used a university purchasing card for personal expenses (Office of the Legislative Auditor General, Report 2026-31, Oct. 20).
Auditors asked the Legislature to consider whether the minimum due process for dismissing tenured faculty is excessive (Report 2026-31).
None of the five municipal power systems auditors interviewed had a documented, practiced cybersecurity incident response plan (Office of the Legislative Auditor General, Report 2026-32, Oct. 2026).
World Trade Center Utah carried out the activities required under its two state contracts, auditors found (Office of the Legislative Auditor General, Report 2026-19, Sept. 15).
Auditors found Utah's court system has a strategic plan but no formal governance accountability framework, and third-degree felony incarceration rates ranged from 35% to 75% across Wasatch Front districts (Report 2026-21, Sept. 2026). The Judicial Council said it agrees there are opportunities to improve.
The Division of Child and Family Services implemented all three intake recommendations from a 2024 efficiency evaluation (Report 2026-29, Oct. 2026).
The Department of Agriculture and Food has all three inspection recommendations from a 2025 evaluation in process (Report 2026-30, Oct. 2026).
Still open
Whether lawmakers change the rules for dismissing tenured faculty, as Report 2026-31 recommends they consider.
How the Utah Board of Higher Education responds to the audit's recommendations on department chairs (Report 2026-31).
Whether the Judicial Council adopts a governance accountability framework and a routine review of sentencing outcomes (Report 2026-21).
Next: The Legislature's 2027 general session opens in January.
The story so far
Sources checked October 27, 2026. Dates below describe events or source documents; checking a source does not make its data current.
The Office of the Utah State Auditor has published reports on state agencies, schools and local governments all year. Its recent-reports page lists them by month, from a Feb. 2026 privacy audit of the Department of Health and Human Services to an October 2026 privacy audit of Nebo School District. [1]
Background and milestones
In March 2026 the office released the State of Utah single audit and management letters for the Tax Commission, Natural Resources, Public Safety, Workforce Services, Transportation and Government Operations. [1]
Reports on education programs include a May 2026 review of the Special Needs Scholarship Program and a June 2026 limited review of Utah Fits All, both at the State Board of Education. [1]
An April 2026 supplement covers the Medicaid upper payment limit for skilled nursing facilities at the Department of Health and Human Services. [1]
Milestones
February 2026 — HHS privacy audit released(published) The auditor's page lists a privacy audit of the Department of Health and Human Services that it says found critical deficiencies. [1]
March 2026 — Single audit and agency management letters(published) Six state departments received management letters. [1]
April 2026 — Medicaid upper payment limit supplement(published) Released for skilled nursing facilities. [1]
May 2026 — Special Needs Scholarship Program review(published) A State Board of Education program. [1]
June 2026 — Utah Fits All limited review(published) A State Board of Education program. [1]
Planned and scheduled dates reflect the source as checked. They do not confirm that an event happened.
What to watch
Read each report's agency response and its follow-up dates. The recent-reports page lists titles by month only, so findings need to be read in the reports themselves. [1]
Unanswered questions and limits
What did each agency commit to, and by when?
Which findings repeat across years?
The page gives titles and months only, not days or findings.
The Legislative Auditor General's separate performance audits are not covered here.
Auditors found colleges paid some tenured faculty to leave, including a $175,000 payment to a professor who charged personal expenses to a university card.
Legislative auditors say the court system lacks a formal governance accountability framework for its strategic plan. The judiciary agrees there is room to improve.
· From Office of the Legislative Auditor General
AI-generated illustration: The Utah Ledger · Original graphic · The Utah Ledger
In its first full year, the Government Records Office says average hearing waits fell from about 130 days to within the 64-day guideline, ending at 52. New appeals jumped to 309. It asks lawmakers for more discretion over hearings.
AI-generated illustration: The Utah Ledger · Original graphic · The Utah Ledger
A Sept. 15 legislative audit of fiscal 2023–25 found missing budgets, incomplete final reports and untracked outcomes. It reported no new misspending. The office accepted every recommendation, with Aug. 31, 2027 target dates.
AI-generated illustration: The Utah Ledger · Original graphic · The Utah Ledger
The Sept. 15 audit of the Division of Facilities Construction and Management found building code problems on all six projects checked. The division concurred with every recommendation and set target dates from Oct. 31, 2026 through January 2028.
AI-generated illustration: The Utah Ledger · Original graphic · The Utah Ledger
The nonprofit received about $2.2 million through two state contracts in fiscal 2025. Its GOED contract expires Dec. 31, 2026. Auditors recommended checking reported trade results and spelling out how state money is spent.
AI-generated illustration: The Utah Ledger · Original graphic · The Utah Ledger
An April audit found the three largest participants, Beaver Valley, Gunnison Valley and Kane County hospitals, used 49% of the money at nursing facilities. The hospitals say the program follows its contract and the law. The state health department concurred or partly concurred with the recommendations.
