YSU subcommittee moves ahead in search

YOUNGSTOWN -- A Youngstown State University trustees' subcommittee has moved one step closer to hiring an outside firm to complete its internal auditing.
The audit subcommittee approved Monday a draft request for proposals that will be shared with various auditing firms. Terry Ondreyka, YSU's vice president for financial affairs, said he chairs an evaluation committee that will review the draft and determine a time line to have a firm in place by July 1. He said the RFPs should go out within 30 days.
Trustees have said outsourcing will ensure a more independent auditing process. Union representatives have opposed the move, saying it will cost the university money and result in lost jobs. Also on Monday, the subcommittee met in a closed-door session with a representative of the Ernst & amp; Young firm of Cleveland, which completed an external audit of the fiscal year 2002-03.
A draft report from Ernst & amp; Young shows that YSU's financial statements are a fair representation of the university's financial position and that its fiscal year-end assets and cash flows conform with accepted accounting principles.