SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) – Most of you probably haven't given your county auditor all that much thought.
even though auditors keep an eye on your tax money.
But ABC 4 has obtained a confidential new draft of bill, one which might give auditors sweeping new powers.
This leads us to Salt Lake County Auditor Greg Hawkins, someone who is not a shrinking violet.
Hawkins is currently engaged in a political and legal dispute with the Salt Lake County Council over who controls the money.
The new draft bill is nine pages long and Hawkins reportedly helped write and circulate it.
He hopes the legislature will pass in its upcoming session.
This bill, according to several who have also seen it, is a jaw dropping power grab.
Among other things:
- The bill grants auditors broad power to subpoena witnesses and documents
- It would allow the county auditor to examine any matter the auditor considers necessary
- Finally, it would allow auditors to stop payment on the salary of any county official or employee who ignores the instruction of the county auditor.
So, ABC 4 called Hawkins to ask what's up with this bill.
He confirmed that he and other auditors had written it and that it was being circulated.
But Hawkins downplayed the bill's importance saying,
"It's just a clarifying bill. There are no real substantive changes in it."
However, ABC 4 is being told that Hawkins may be having trouble finding a legislator to sponsor this bill.
What's more, ABC 4 has learned, at least some of legislative leadership is dead set against it.
One final note about how some are viewing this bill.
When I told one Capitol insider I was doing a story about this - they said, oh, that's the bill to make the auditor the “God of the county."
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