Do not weaken important financial oversight of this state authority by exempting it from Virginia Public Procurement Act requirements. This authority has a documented track record of exhibiting minimal public transparency with respect to its finances (see a September 2022 investigative report by the Virginia Center for Investigative Journalism), has acknowledged mismanagement of public funds and contracts in discussions among its own board (see March 2023 SRRA Board of Directors minutes), and within the past year has sought a forensic audit. Loosening the critical financial oversight provided to SRRA by the Virginia Public Procurement Act and removing a requirement for competitive bidding from most of the authority’s transactions, which this bill would do, will only heighten the risk of continued mismanagement of public funds by the authority.
Do not weaken important financial oversight of this state authority by exempting it from Virginia Public Procurement Act requirements. This authority has a documented track record of exhibiting minimal public transparency with respect to its finances (see a September 2022 investigative report by the Virginia Center for Investigative Journalism), has acknowledged mismanagement of public funds and contracts in discussions among its own board (see March 2023 SRRA Board of Directors minutes), and within the past year has sought a forensic audit. Loosening the critical financial oversight provided to SRRA by the Virginia Public Procurement Act and removing a requirement for competitive bidding from most of the authority’s transactions, which this bill would do, will only heighten the risk of continued mismanagement of public funds by the authority.