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Title

INITIAL EVIDENCE ON THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN MUNICIPAL AUDIT COMMITTEES, GOVERNANCE AND INTERNAL CONTROLS

Author

Pamela Jean Strickland, Nova Southeastern UniversityFollow

Date of Award

2011

Document Type

Dissertation - NSU Access Only

Degree Name

Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)

Department

H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship

Advisor

Barbara McElroy

Committee Member

Roger Mayer

Committee Member

Gabriel Suciu

Abstract

This research provides initial empirical evidence on the association between municipal audit committees and internal control problems. Prior research has reported on the use and benefits of municipal audit committees and the quality of governmental accounting and reporting. This study extends prior literature by investigating an area of governmental accounting not heavily researched.

This study also investigates the association between the presence of a municipal audit committee and the form of municipal governance, an area of governmental accounting not yet explored in the literature. Prior research on forms of governance indicates that the professional goals of the city manager, or the political goals of the mayor, may influence his or her decisions concerning municipal operations. Examining the association of the presence of an audit committee and form of governance allows for insight into a new area of municipal research.

This research finds that the presence of an audit committee is not associated with reported internal control deficiencies, but is positively associated with reported internal control weaknesses. This suggests that municipalities with audit committees have higher incidences of reported internal control weaknesses. There is also partial support for an association between the presence of an audit committee and the form of governance. However, the results are not conclusive and suggest that the political climate beyond form of governance influences decisions with regard to having audit committees.

NSUWorks Citation

Pamela Jean Strickland. 2011. INITIAL EVIDENCE ON THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN MUNICIPAL AUDIT COMMITTEES, GOVERNANCE AND INTERNAL CONTROLS. Doctoral dissertation. Nova Southeastern University. Retrieved from NSUWorks, H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship. (108)
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hsbe_etd/108.