Ohio families are working harder than ever, paying their taxes, and expecting the state to handle federal money responsibly. But a new state audit has some troubling news: Ohio has serious problems managing billions in federal funds for healthcare, school meals, unemployment assistance, and energy assistance for low-income families.
The 2025 Single Audit uncovered 18 separate problems across seven state agencies. These aren't small paperwork slip-ups; they include improper payments, missing reports, weak oversight, and failures to check who's actually eligible for benefits.
Department of Development Takes Heavy Hits
One agency that stands out is the Ohio Department of Development. Auditors flagged it for several serious issues, including the following:
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Failing to spend low-income energy assistance (LIHEAP) funds on time.
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Underreporting nearly $6 million in federal carryover balances.
Auditors delivered a clear warning: “Reporting inaccurate and/or incomplete information could subject the Department to federal sanctions, limiting the amount of funding for program activities.”
The same department also came under fire for how it handled pandemic recovery funds (Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds). They lacked basic procedures for properly reviewing financial reports, monitoring vendors, and addressing problems when they arose. That’s your money, meant to help communities recover, but it was distributed without strong guardrails.
School Meals Funding Vanishes from Reports
The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce failed to report properly more than $692 million in federal school nutrition funds to the required transparency system. That includes
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$180.7 million in School Breakfast Program transactions.
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$511.9 million in National School Lunch Program transactions.
Over 2,200 individual transactions didn’t make it into the federal reporting system because the agency lacked proper controls. These are dollars meant to feed Ohio kids in school.
Medicaid: Benefits Going to People Who May Not Qualify
Several findings focused on Medicaid, Ohio’s largest health program. Auditors discovered the following
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Approvals of benefits for individuals earning too much because caseworkers used outdated wage information.
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Unresolved alerts about eligibility changes.
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Weak checks to see whether someone had passed away before continuing payments.
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Failures to check if recipients had other insurance that should pay first.
This means tax dollars could go to people who don’t meet the income rules, while Ohio families who truly need help could face longer waits or tighter budgets.
Unemployment and Welfare Programs
The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services was cited for
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Making improper unemployment insurance payments.
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Failing to follow up on alerts about changes in income or employment for TANF (welfare) recipients.
The Bottom Line: $6.8 Million in Questioned Costs
Auditors tied many of these failures back to the same core issues: weak management oversight, sloppy documentation, incomplete computer systems, and slow follow-up on known problems. Four of the findings included nearly $6.8 million in questioned costs–money that may have been spent improperly.
Why This Matters to Ohio Families
This isn’t abstract government accounting. These are taxpayer dollars contributed by Americans across the country intended to serve Ohio families in need.
We all deserve better. Stronger checks and balances, better technology, and real accountability aren’t “nice-to-haves”; they’re basic responsibilities when handling public money.
Truth in Accounting will continue to follow this story and push for real reforms so that federal dollars sent to Ohio actually reach the people who need them most and don’t get lost in administrative failures and weak oversight.