Is Atlantic County, New Jersey Perfect for 25 Consecutive Years?

This is actually quite hard to believe.

It rarely occurs in government practice at any level.

In the case of Atlantic County, New Jersey, it’s actually true.

For the 25th consecutive year, the Atlantic County government has achieved a perfect audit … it should be noted, from an independent auditor.

Twenty-five prefect audits, top-tier bond ratings, economic diversification - these are among the many reasons Atlantic County is the best run county in the state," according to Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson, who along with the Board of County Commissioners oversee an annual budget in excess of $262 million. "Few, if any, local governments can match our record of performance, said Levinson.

Simply put, an independent auditor did not find any weaknesses or deficiencies in its review of financial transactions of Atlantic County government offices and institutions, as per the audit report.

When Levinson became Atlantic County executive, he implemented a policy change… Whereby a new auditing firm is selected every three years.

The selection of an auditor is done by a competitive bidding process.

Not changing auditors is like allowing a student to mark his own paper - he tends to score higher," said Levinson. We're confident in our financial policies and procedures, but if something is not right, we want to know," said Levinson. Our obligation is to our taxpayers."

Levinson acknowledged

"Not changing auditors is like allowing a student to mark his own paper - he tends to score higher," noted Levinson.

"We're confident in our financial policies and procedures, but if something is not right, we want to know," he said. "Our obligation is to our taxpayers."

Levinson acknowledged the County Treasurer Bonnie Lindaw, along with the fiscal support staff and budget team.

Levinson also shared the following comments:

I'd also like to commend Commissioner Chairwoman Maureen Kern and the entire board for their dedicated efforts and contributions. The Commissioners have worked with us throughout the year to maintain our conservative fiscal management while continuing to meet the needs of our residents with quality programs and services," said Levinson. I am extraordinarily proud of what we have accomplished as a team. When you do the right thing for the right reasons, it shows. And that's what we continue to do, said Levinson.

Levinson is quite rightly proud of this accomplishment. He should be.

SOURCE: Linda Gilmore, Chief of Staff for the Atlantic County Executive & Public Information Officer for The County of Atlantic.