Auditor of State Keith Faber announced on May 22 that auditors identified 18 findings and questioned costs totaling nearly $6.8 million among seven state agencies administering federally funded programs during fiscal year 2025.
The annual State of Ohio Single Audit is required by federal law to ensure that federal funds allocated to the state are spent appropriately. This audit is significant because it monitors the use of billions in federal assistance, including major public benefits and Medicaid payments, impacting many residents across the state.
According to Faber, “The audit details financial activities from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.” The report shows that for this period, Ohio administered 371 federal programs from 24 agencies with total spending reaching $45 billion—an increase of $1.26 billion over the previous year. Of this amount, $32.6 billion came from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; $28.5 billion supported Medicaid programs serving lower-income residents, older adults, individuals with disabilities, pregnant women, infants and children. Another $4.8 billion was provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for food and nutrition assistance.
The number of findings decreased compared to prior years: there were previously 19 findings in both fiscal years 2024 and 2023; higher numbers were reported in earlier years (24 in FY22; 25 in FY21; and a peak at 38 in FY20). Questioned costs included more than $6.5 million related to summer food assistance given to students not eligible due to age restrictions.
Additional issues involved Medicaid programming eligibility errors—including payments made for services rendered after recipients had died—resulting in an error rate around 15.6% within tested samples. Faber said if these rates held across all recipients statewide it could mean between $800 million and $4.4 billion might be unallowable costs.
Auditors noted operational challenges as well: “The volume of incoming alerts/matches being sent to county caseworkers results in an increased workload and ineffective application of the alert process.” The audit also included two findings for recovery: one involving a total recovery demand of $50,000 against a business owner who received fraudulent TechCred program payments; another sought repayment from an employee at a residential school who was paid twice for overlapping hours by different employers.
Faber’s office is responsible for auditing more than five thousand nine hundred state and local government agencies throughout Ohio.
