Dave Yost

Dave Yost currently serves as Ohio's 32nd Auditor of State.^[1] He previously held the positions of Delaware County Auditor from 1999 to 2003 and County Prosecutor from 2003 to 2011.^[2]

Family, Education and Early Career

Dave Yost graduated from The Ohio State University with a B.A. degree in Journalism. He became an award-winning journalist with the Columbus Citizen-Journal.^[2] He went on to serve in senior positions within the administrations of Columbus Mayor Buck Rinehart^[2] and Ohio Governor George Voinovich.^[2] He then earned a Juris Doctor from Capital University Law School.

While operating a successful private law practice,^[2] Yost was appointed Delaware County Auditor in 1999.^[3] In 2003, he became the Delaware County Prosecutor^[4] where he won the first-ever capital murder case in the county’s history^[5] and successfully prosecuted the largest drug ring to ever operate in Delaware County.^[6]

Auditor Yost and his wife Darlene live in Franklin County. They have three children and three grandchildren.^[2]

Auditor of State (2011-present)

Auditor Yost won the election for Ohio's 32nd state auditor in November 2010.^[7]

Initiatives in Office

Statewide School Attendance Data Audit

After receiving several tips of suspected attendance data manipulation in school districts around the state, Auditor Yost launched a statewide audit of student attendance data on July 26, 2012.^[8] The audit was conducted in three phases^[9] and found that nine school districts across the state “scrubbed” their attendance data.^[10] Auditor Yost also provided the Ohio General Assembly with recommendations for improvements to the state’s accountability system.^[11]

Columbus City Schools Special Audit

While conducting the statewide school attendance data audit, concerns were raised about potential grade changing at the Columbus City School District,^[12] and due to the scope of the fraud allegations,^[13] a separate special audit was launched.^[14] Released in January 2014, the audit revealed a top-down culture of data manipulation and employee intimidation.^[15] Referrals for possible criminal charges and disciplinary action were sent to prosecutors and the Ohio Department of Education.^[16] Mastermind Steve Tankovich became a convicted criminal on July 30, 2014 and agreed as part of a plea deal to cooperate with any further prosecutions.^[17]

Fighting Fraud

Since taking office in 2011,^[2] Auditor Yost identified $17 million in stolen and misspent public money and worked with law enforcement to turn 80 corrupt public officials into convicted criminals.^[18][19]

• Ohio Stops Fraud Mobile App 

  In 2014, Auditor Yost unveiled Ohio Stops Fraud^[20] – an Android^[21] and iPhone application^[22] to report suspected fraud in public offices across the state.^[22] Ohio Stops Fraud allows any user to easily report suspected fraud anytime, anywhere.^[23]

  Carl Shye 

  During his first weeks in office, Auditor Yost noticed a pattern of problems in charter school audits around the state involving then-treasurer Carl Shye.^[24] The office performed 19 audits and identified $1,115,461 in stolen and misspent money by Shye.^[25] The Auditor of State’s partnership with the FBI and US Attorney led to an embezzlement charge against Shye, and he was sentenced to two years in prison on October 31, 2012 and ordered to pay $472,580 in restitution.^[26]

Campaign Finance Law

In 2012, Auditor Yost worked with legislators to strengthen Ohio law to institute a penalty of a misdemeanor of the first degree for public officials who violate campaign finance law.^[27] Passed with broad, bi-partisan support,^[28] H.B. 326 was drafted after an audit of the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority (TARTA) found the organization illegally loaned $66,885 to a PAC tasked with gathering resources to fund TARTA levy campaigns.^[29] While such actions were already illegal prior to the legislation, H.B. 326 now allows prosecutors to seek criminal sanction.^[30]

Skinny Government

• Performance Audits 

  Auditor Yost came into office with a mission to “skinny down” Ohio’s governments from the schoolhouse to the statehouse.^[31] Since 2011, Auditor Yost released 68 performance audits of state and local governments and provided more than $150 million in potential savings.^[32] The average return on investment is $23 for every dollar spent to conduct an audit.^[32]

In his first legislative initiative, he worked with the Ohio General Assembly to expand the use of and access to performance audits.^[33] Ohio Revised Code Section 117.46 now requires performance audits of at least four state agencies each biennium.^[34] The first four agencies to receive performance audits were the Ohio Departments of Job and Family Services, Education, and Transportation, as well as the Ohio Housing Finance Agency.^[35] These audits identified more than $78 million in potential savings for Ohio’s taxpayers.^[36] Most recently, a performance audit was launched at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.^[36]

• Local Government Efficiency 

  To expand access of performance audits to local communities, Auditor Yost worked with legislators to create the Leverage for Efficiency, Accountability and Performance Fund.^[33] The LEAP Fund is a revolving loan fund that advances the costs of a performance audit to state agencies and local governments that might not otherwise be able to afford to have one conducted. The loan is repaid the following year from savings reaped from the audit’s recommendations and rolled into new performance audits.^[37]

Auditor Yost created skinnyOhio.org in 2011.^[38] as an online clearinghouse to help Ohio’s local governments and school districts find best practices from Ohio and national performance audits.^[31] Through this site, governments of all sizes and types can explore proven strategies, policies and procedures that facilitate efficient and effective organization, operation and budgeting.^[31]

• Share Ohio 

  The Auditor of State’s office conducted a first-of-its-kind study in Ohio with the Lake County Capital Equipment Utilization Study.^[39] Released in April 2012, the study reviewed equipment at 24 local governments in the county.^[39] The analysis revealed that some equipment is used as little as 3 percent of the time, or about one day a month. Based on the study results, the Auditor Yost and his staff worked with local officials to develop a public works capital equipment sharing agreement that serves as Ohio’s statewide model.^[40]

The Lake County Capital Equipment Utilization Study prompted Auditor Yost to develop ShareOhio.gov^[41] - a website that, at no cost to local governments, helps communities share equipment.^[42]

Electoral history

References

Ohio State Auditor
Gibson Hough Osborn Bryan Brough Woods Morgan Wright Tayler Cole Godman Williams Oglevee Kiesewetter Poe Guilbert Fullington Donahey J. Tracy J. T. Ferguson Rhodes R. Tracy Goble Cloud Reilly Cloud J. T. Ferguson T. E. Ferguson Petro Montgomery Taylor Yost

Current elected statewide political officials of Ohio
U.S. Senators	Sherrod Brown Rob Portman
State government	John Kasich, Governor Mary Taylor, Lieutenant Governor Jon A. Husted, Secretary of State Mike DeWine, Attorney General Dave Yost, State Auditor Josh Mandel, Treasurer
Senate	Keith Faber, President Larry Obhof, President pro tempore Tom Patton, Majority Leader Joe Schiavoni, Minority Leader
House	Cliff Rosenberger, Speaker Ron Amstutz, Speaker pro tempore Barbara Sears, Majority Leader Fred Strahorn, Minority Leader
Supreme Court	Maureen O'Connor, Chief Justice Paul Pfeifer Terrence O'Donnell Judith Ann Lanzinger William O'Neill Sharon L. Kennedy Judith L. French