The Nation: Audits in New York

Abraham D. Beanie was elected mayor of New York City last November largely on the strength of his reputation as a solid, superefficient city controller, a post he held off and on for eight years. Last week the city’s new controller, Harrison J. Goldin, charged that under Beame’s stewardship the controller’s office had been inexcusably sloppy in its record keeping and decidedly lax in accounting for city funds. Announcing the results of two separate audits that he had ordered after assuming office, Goldin first alleged that $5.4 million in bonds supposedly locked up securely in the controller’s vaults was missing and unaccounted for. Then he released figures compiled by a pool of New York banks showing that the city had at least $45 million more in assets than Beame’s records as controller had indicated.

More than somewhat embarrassed, Mayor Beame issued a statement admitting that he indeed knew of serious discrepancies in the city’s books as early as 1972, and that he had unsuccessfully tried throughout 1973 to reconcile the figures. But he had no comment on further charges by the new controller. Goldin’s auditors found inadequate security measures in effect, poor understanding by employees of the office’s standard record-keeping procedures, and a generally “antiquated method for recording and reporting” the city’s financial affairs. Beame may well have more explanations to make: Goldin’s office will shortly release an audit of city employees’ $7 billion pension funds.