ALAMOSA, Colo.—The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission is trying to figure out how to deal with an accounting error by the Division of Wildlife that will continue to drain resources for several more years.
The balance in the Wildlife Cash Fund, which pays for most game-management activities, will drop from $16 million to $5 million by 2014.
“That’s a number that can’t go to zero. If it goes to zero, you’re broke, and you can’t do business,” Steve Cassin, the agency’s chief financial officer, told the commission at its monthly meeting Thursday.
Commissioners thought they had $32 million more than they actually did this year. They were making spending decisions since 2008 based on that bad information.
Cassin told commissioners that it was an accounting error and assured them that the money was not misspent and nothing is missing. Officials said they failed to subtract spending on land and water acquisitions and other expenses from 2006 to 2007 and 2009 to 2010.
State officials have asked for an audit.
According to the Durango Herald ( ), the problem occurred at the Division of Wildlife before it merged with state parks to form the Colorado Parks and Wildlife division.
The division’s budget experts will meet Monday to review options the commission can consider this fall.
For a short-term fix, Parks and Wildlife leaders froze most of their capital projects for the year.
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Information from: Durango Herald,
