Interim appraiser: audit found paperwork gaps, not fiscal harm, in Sedgwick County industrial revenue bond filings

Brent, Sedgwick County's interim appraiser, told the commission Wednesday that a legislative post audit of industrial revenue bonds (IRBs) identified inconsistencies in paperwork and reporting but did not show any fiscal harm to local taxpayers or to companies that received exemptions. "We found no issues there," Brent said, summarizing the audit's findings.

The audit reviewed three areas: the estimated fiscal impact of IRBs on state and local governments, the reporting that cities and counties submit to the Board of Tax Appeals (BOTA) or on property tax exemptions, and how many foreign companies had received IRBs. Brent said a discrepancy arose when county staff compared a Kansas Department of Revenue report with the county's internal list of economic-development exemptions and discovered they did not match.

That difference, Brent said, was largely procedural. "Some did, some did not" go on to BOTA, he said, and the county realized a number of applications had not been forwarded as expected. Brent described the problem as "mismanagement of paperwork, if you will," adding that the exemptions the county had been applying likely would have been approved by BOTA and therefore produced no fiscal impact.

County staff have coordinated with the state Property Valuation Division (PVD) to clean up records and put a more formal review process in place. Brent said the new workflow involves a dedicated staff person, review by the county appraiser and deputy appraiser, and legal review to avoid siloed handling of exemption applications going forward.

Commissioners asked few questions during the update. Brent said the county informed the legislative auditors that earlier counts were likely inaccurate because BOTA did not have complete information and emphasized that the current work is aimed at improving documentation and reporting.

The commission closed the discussion and indicated the matter would be monitored; no formal vote or ordinance was taken during the session.