The Ministry of the Environment has not adapted all requirements of the accounting reform from 2010
PRESS RELEASE on Audit No. 14/19 – May 11, 2015
The Supreme Audit Office scrutinized the Ministry of the Environment and its accounts as well as reporting in their financial statements and final accounts for the year 2013. During the auditing operation, a significant overall inaccuracy in the total amount of CZK 7,100 million was found.
The auditors concluded that the Ministry of the Environment had failed to keep accounts in correct and complete ways. In 2013 cash flow overview, the total inaccuracy revealed by auditors amounted to CZK 6,500 million; the sum represents nearly 90 % of the overall inaccuracy. Furthermore, the Ministry kept incorrect accounts of the transfers provided from the State budget and wrongfully reported about the long-term assets and claims. With some overdue receivables, the Ministry failed to duly process corrective adjustments, and incorrectly reported about adjustments from previous accounting periods and about revaluated properties, which were not intended for sale. Some data that should not be participating in accounts were entered into off-balance sheets. The final accounts contained no information about accounting methods used in 2013 and supplement information about individual statement items. Last but not least, the Ministry failed to perform the inventorying for the year 2013 in accordance with the Accounting Act.
No significant inaccuracy was found in the financial statements, but the final accounts omitted some information related to the State budget heading’s management, for instance the evaluation of economy, efficiency and effectiveness of their expenditures.
The Ministry of the Environment violated the budgetary discipline when in the end of 2013 held nearly CZK 32 million on bank accounts outside the Czech National Bank. In this context, the SAO made a notification about the violation of budgetary regulations to the respective financial authority. Violations of budgetary regulations were also revealed in cases of misusing the funds, which had been provided to the Czech Republic before the accession to the EU, and in cases of misusing the funds from twinning projects, which were administered by the Ministry within the frame of the pre-accession aid.
The SAO also calls attention to the fact that there are insufficient regulations for statements on emission allowances, which are recorded as a specific type of intangible assets. In this case, the insufficiency amounted to CZK 1,000 million.
Owing to unclear regulations for some areas of accounting, the SAO was again unable to form an opinion on final accounts of the Ministry of the Environment for the year 2013.
Communication Department
Supreme Audit Office