The Joint Legislative Audit Committee (JLAC) is established through the Legislature’s rulemaking authority under the California Constitution, Government Code Section 10501 and the Joint Rules of the Senate and Assembly, Rule 37.3. Duties and responsibilities in the Joint Rules of the Senate and Assembly apply to the JLAC as well as all powers conferred upon committees by Article IV, Section 11 of the California Constitution.
With the goal of improving government performance, the JLAC independently and through the work of the California State Auditor’s Office (CSA) oversees the operations and finances of government and publicly created entities. The JLAC reviews and takes action on audit requests, which are submitted to the Committee from any Member of the Legislature. It also monitors government operations through oversight hearings.
The JLAC is a 14-member committee consisting of seven Assembly Members and seven Senators. The Chair of the Committee is a member of the Assembly and the Vice Chair a member of the Senate. The JLAC can meet and conduct its business at any time and at any location within the State, including during recess and the interim period between sessions.
The Chair sets the schedule of hearings, directs the order of presentation for topics for consideration, permits questions to be asked by members of the Committee, and solicits public comment at each hearing. During hearings that require Committee action on any matter, four members from each house constitute a quorum and the number of votes necessary for an action.
The JLAC considers each audit request as analyzed by the CSA and takes one of four actions on each request: approve, deny, retain, or refer to another agency. Audit requests approved by the JLAC are conducted by the CSA and are commonly referred to as committee or discretionary audit requests. For these discretionary audits, the JLAC sets the priorities for the CSA.
Audits considered by the JLAC include performance audits, which examine whether state agencies and programs are efficiently and effectively; accomplishing specified goals and objectives; complying with laws, regulations and policies; and, using state resources properly. Performance audits are on a variety of topics, which range from broad to very specific in scope. The JLAC also considers financial and financial-related audits of government and publicly created entities.
Additional information about the JLAC audit process is listed under the FAQ tab.
Additional information about the CSA is available online at: https://www.auditor.ca.gov