Former Cal State official received more than $150,000 in improper expense payments, state audit finds

A former high-ranking California State University official collected more than $150,000 in improper expense reimbursements over three years, including claims for unnecessary trips to locales such as Amsterdam and Shanghai, meals that exceeded allowable amounts and commutes between his Northern California home and Cal State’s Long Beach headquarters, a state audit has found.

The audit, released Wednesday, also scolds the university for a lack of oversight in approving expenses that were “unnecessary and not in the best interest of the university or the state.”

It comes at an especially troublesome time for the system, which recently has taken a series of controversial actions, such as steep student fee hikes, enrollment reductions and drastic cost-cutting measures across the 23-campus system to help close a half-billion-dollar budget gap.

University officials said the subject of the audit is David J. Ernst, the former chief of information technology services. Ernst left Cal State in July 2008 for reasons not related to the audit, officials said, and is now associate vice president for information resources and communications at the University of California. An assistant in Ernst’s office said he was traveling and could not immediately be reached for comment.

Auditors found that the improper reimbursements totaled $152,441 from July 2005 through July 2008, and included $39,135 for travel expenses, $26,455 for business meals that exceeded allowances, $43,288 in prohibited commuting expenses, $24,676 for monthly living allowances that he was not entitled to and $17,053 for personal expenses such as home telephone and Internet services, computer and printer supplies, an annual subscription to a newspaper and annual membership in an airline executive club.

Auditors also found $1,834 in reimbursements to Ernst that resulted from duplicate and overpayments. Cal State officials said they are seeking repayment of just that portion of the questionable expense payments.

But the university officials said that in the wake of the investigation, they have enacted more stringent controls for regulating meal and travel reimbursements.

“It is clear that some of the amounts claimed were excessive and unacceptable, and would not be approved under policies now in place,” said spokeswoman Claudia Keith. “The CSU will continue to maintain tight oversight of its reimbursement process to ensure that appropriate reimbursements are given moving forward.”

—Carla Rivera

Comments

[kristin]

It pains me to think of this money that could have been used to help college students with their tuition. It seems the CSU and UC execs care more about their pocketbooks than for the students they're supposed to serve.

[Da Maverick]

And this scumbag has now taken a job with the UC? Are you kidding? Is everyone's HR dept. asleep these days or what?

[Heather]

Traveling where? Paris? Tahiti?

What a jerk.

[roy krausen]

All government funded agencies need to have outside auditors who have power to audit expense accounts of Government executives and elected officials. This would not be as difficult as it seems. Narrow down the classes of expense that are the most abused (travel, personal and dress expenses,individual office remodelling and gift acceptances) make sure all empoyees comply with these expense listing requirements, and then have the outside auditor go through a sampling to find abberrations. There should be clear penalties and procedures. The public demands that government employees are accountable. While we're at it, we need to have put in place an independent auditing system to sample government departments to determine whether the stated purpose of this department is being achieved, and is being run efficiently. This oversight group must be independent or its efforts will be a sham and another wink to the old boy (and girl) network.

[Dan]

I am sure that this official is not the only one to steal from the taxpayers of California. Where were the controls? Who was the department manager and who was responsible for approving this official's expense reports? Yet taxes and tuition continue to raise but services continue to be cut. Sad state of affairs.

[John]

This person committed fraud and Cal State is asking for $1834. Whose head rolls for this, no one. Just more corruption within the public system. No accountability in public employment. Has anyone noticed the corruption in the public system. Do we care? Does anyone read newspapers? I am sick of it. No to taxes, no to bonds, vote everyone in office today out, pass a ballot measure that does not allow anyone voted out of office to be appointed to any board, etc. And start firing anyone who commits a crime, better proscute them. Enough is enough.

[Duane]

Sounds like a gov't operation to me. Government health care, anyone?

[evad the slayer]

Gee, nice cushy job ya had there fella. Nice fat salary plus HUGE fake expenses to boot. Too bad the State Government and Universities aren't run like private enterprises. Otherwise this clown would be in prison and making repayments plus interest, via liens on all his assets. He should be immediately FIRED from his current state "cushy" job and forfeit any and all retirement pay coming to him.

[jag136]

Its the Peter Principle in play....the more you screw up, the higher you get moved up!!! This is fraud, the man should be fired!!! And don't tell me he didn't know the rules...and who was the fool who approved all of these expenses, his mistress?

[Nannie Helen Burrows]

WHY is this not theft? You prosecute small time theives that do not harm a large subset. But educated criminals always seem to get off FREE! Who says CRIME dpoesn't pay. It does if you are a White Collar Criminal!!Can we say Countrywide, Wall Street,B of A? ETc., Etc.,

[twitter.com/cavscout90]

better check the other chiefs...i doubt he was the only one.

[Tom]

I would like to thank you so much for bringing up this article and issue. It goes to show that even people you are told to trust in the CSU system can't always be trusted. Huge thanks and your awareness. It really does help out not only the public but also the student community in finding out what is happening in their local community.

Thank you.

[Richard]

OK, perhaps I misread it,or it's misquoted, but the article seems to be saying
that of the $150,000+ that the guy was not supposed to get, they are only going
to try to get back $1834 that was from duplication?

If this is a matter of the payments being legit under the old rules, well the person
who wrote the old rules needs to get fired.

[Supreme Leader]

Probably traveling to Amsterdam and Shanghai.

[Supreme Leader]

Stop complaining. You get what you pay for.

If we want more quality people, we need to pay even MORE.

With BIGGER expense accounts.

Otherwise we are going to lose the best people to other states.

[Rick]

The last sentence quotes Claudia Keith as saying that the CSU will continue to maintain tight oversight of its reimbursement process. If they actually had tight oversight to begin with, they wouldn't be in this mess! Morons!!!

[Baronpilot]

Nobody screws with the IT guy. Everyone wants a new computer.

[calstateemployee]

This is what you get when Charles Reed and his Republican cronies manage public higher education: AIG and Enron and management. Long life to Republican leadership in higher education!!

[Luke]

And you want a government agency to run our Health Care system? Take this abuse and fraud at this level and multiply it by at least 100. That's what you'll get.

This occurs at the private level but there are usually consequences for these types of actions(termination). I can't remember the last time I heard about a goverment employee being fired for anything. It's usually a "suspended with pay" type of sanction.

[WSJ]

I suggest the student Government and Accounting/Economics majors perform the audit rather than spend more money to outsource other companies for auditing. This will strengthen student leverage and provide internships/training at the same time.

You know why the "officials" didn't catch this? It's because they do the same kind of criminal "expensing". The students have to take control. This is your school. Crowd the Admin offices in protest. Audit all departments and staff. Make Student Government an integral part of education.

[WSJ]

PUBLIC MONEY = PUBLIC RECORDS = TRANSPARENCY. Students, demand your tuition be spent wisely!

[Baffled Observer]

Why isn't this a criminal fraud?

[solimiansky]

we like to think that corruption runs deep in 3rd world countries, but look at the US. Right in front of 300 mil citizens the US government allows the raping of its citizens by big banks, corruption at the senior level, corruption at the local level. UC and CS top executive get all kinds of perks, this article shows just one example. We are paying more in tuition because we have to maintain executives kick backs. Let's face it our college system is going down the bloody toilet and we are standing looking at it!!!

[Alert]

David Ernst was also the ringleader of both the CETI and the billion-dollar CMS boondoggle project. Research deeper into what he has done to the CSU system, please?

[Tarwater]

And where is the long arm of law enforcement?