It’s not too common for a Cal State University employee to spend nearly $159,000 over the span of two years on travel expenses.
A recent CSU audit revealed that $158,994 was spent in travel costs by a CSU Systemwide Risk Management employee from July 2010 to September 2012.
According to the audit, the CSU employee filed 146 travel expense claims for trips to San Francisco, London, Kenya, Ghana and more.
The same week the audit’s findings were revealed, CSU Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer Benjamin Quillian said he plans to retire by the end of the year.
Some, like President of the Statewide Union Police Association Jeff Solomon, have called Quillian’s retirement and its timing “suspicious,” because Quillian’s department supervises SRM.
According to CSU Spokesman Mike Uhlenkamp, however, the timing of Quillian’s retirement and the release of the audit report are not linked.
Based on the extent of the employee’s overspending and lack of upper-management oversight, we at the Daily 49er believe the CSU should be hold its employees more responsible for the audit’s findings.
In a time when state funding for the CSU is low, it is abominable to learn that an employee could spend so much money so freely.
The CSU should be a transparent system focused on developing student success and ensuring that every taxpayer’s dollar is well spent.
Instead, the audit’s findings have revealed a flawed system. Although the employee’s lucrative spending is deplorable, the lack of oversight is even worse.
How did one employee spending nearly $159,000 in two years not raise any eyebrows within the CSU?
Whether Quillian’s retirement is ill-timed is not the main issue. The main issue is that nobody bothered to stop this employee from spending so much.
The recent CSU audit should spark change within the system and ensure that an act of such nature does not happen again.
Moving forward, the CSU should put in place a more transparent system in which all employee travel expenses are closely examined.
A failure to do so would further tarnish the CSU’s reputation.
We acknowledge that a public employee spending large amounts of money is not new. Many other public agencies also suffer from lack of oversight and extravagant spending.
But when the money spent comes from state funding and students fees, the CSU should keep a closer eye on where its money is going.
And in order to not let these findings further damage the CSU’s reputation, officials should be held accountable.
Instead of dodging the issue, CSU officials should apologize for the employee’s actions and reassure the public that this kind of free spending will not be seen again.