POL South Carolina found a state bank account with $1.8B, but they have no idea what it's for

[Macgyver]

South Carolina found a state bank account with $1.8B, but they have no idea what it's for

South Carolina lawmakers are trying to get to the bottom of a $1.8 billion state bank account whose funds are of unknown origin and purpose.

www.foxnews.com

South Carolina found a state bank account with $1.8B, but they have no idea what it's for​

Republican Gov Henry McMaster assured the public that 'no money was lost'​

Lawmakers in South Carolina are trying to untangle a state bank account that inexplicably holds $1.8 billion, with officials saying they do not know where it came from or what it was intended to fund.
Republican Gov. Henry McMaster assured the public on Tuesday that "no money was lost." The bank account seems to be the result of ongoing accounting troubles for the state arising from a computer system transition in the late 2010s.
The South Carolina Senate has established a panel to investigate the funds. Leading the effort is Republican state Sen. Larry Grooms, who likened the situation to "going into your bank and the bank president tells you we have a lot of money in our vault, but we just don’t know who it belongs to."

Investigative accountants are still trying to untangle the mess, but it appears that every time the state’s books were out of whack, money was shifted from somewhere into an account that helped balance it out, according to lawmakers.


South Carolina Treasurer Curtis Loftis smiles during a meeting of the State Fiscal Accountability Authority on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Columbia, South Carolina. (Associated Press)
Republican Treasurer Curtis Loftis has failed to provide answers regarding the cash, saying only that he succeeded in accruing some $200 million in interest for the state. He argues the lack of information regarding where the money is supposed to go is the fault of the comptroller general, Brian Gaines.

Loftis argued earlier this month that Gaines "is attempting to shift responsibility to clean up its mess to the Treasurer."

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster says the state will hold off on any plans to spend the $1.8 billion until it can verify whether it was intended to be spent elsewhere.
Both Loftis and Gaines have been summoned to appear before Grooms' panel. Grooms noted Gaines has responded to every question posed by lawmakers so far in the investigation, while Loftis has not.


Gov. McMaster says the state will hold off on any plans to spend the $1.8 billion until it can verify whether it was intended to be spent elsewhere.
"That’s a lot of money and there is no need to hurry up and try to spend it," McMaster said.

 

[desertvet2]

Oh let's not kid ourselves, they will get to the bottom of it in a hurry...and then say oops, we messed up gonna have time raise taxes toncover the loss.

 

[Squid]

That 10% for the ‘Big Guy’ whoever that may be sure adds up fast…

 

[Kathy in FL]

Slush fund

 

[Sammy55]

Slush fund

That's a pretty big slush fund!! I hope that they decide to give it back to the people taxpayers.

ETA - Not back to the people as that could include illegals. It should go back to those who paid taxes to the state. But I'm just dreaming........ They'll probably find some way to pay for pork projects with the accompanying "you pat my back, I'll pat yours" payouts.

 

[hd5574]

Nicky Halley's slush fund

 

[Publius]

It's one of many unmarked accounts that an attorney and a judge move million$ of unspent tax payers money into at the end of each year. They forgot about this one.
About ten or more years ago the state of Washington hired an accountant to do an audited of the state and what they found was the state had many billion$ in unspent funds they quickly swept that under the rug.

 

[Satanta]

It's mine. I forgot about it during a move. They need to contact me and send it to my current bank account or just maik the cash to me in some boxes marked ;Cheweys' or something.

 

[greysage]

And that is just one billion of thousands of billions of USD$ that disappeared unknowingly from public coffers.
Someone is crapping their drawers that this fund was found out.

 

[88Bronco]

Nicky Halley's slush fund

Maybe Nikki's makeup fund...that Avon is getting expensive!

 

[WildDaisy]

My guess is years ago someone "moved" the money for their own purposes, died in the time since and since then it has been accruing interest and compounding quickly, but because beneficiaries never knew of the secret accounts existence, no one ever claimed it (because it was stolen)

 

[Publius]

And that is just one billion of thousands of billions of USD$ that disappeared unknowingly from public coffers.
Someone is crapping their drawers that this fund was found out.

From what I learned a good many years ago this is an on going problem in many states and it seems it involves lawyers every time it has gotten some exposure, we had a thread on this very subject and at the time a few states got caught doing it but no one got arrested and trial in a court of law when they should have for stealing many million$ of Dollar$.

 

[greysage]

From what I learned a good many years ago this is an on going problem in many states and it seems it involves lawyers every time it has gotten some exposure, we had a thread on this very subject and at the time a few states got caught doing it but no one got arrested and trial in a court of law when they should have for stealing many million$ of Dollar$.

I recall. There's apparently two sets (or more) of books for many municipalities, and they are very much in the black.
What the heck was that called?

 

[Barry Natchitoches]

Uh, you need to look no further.

The money is my petty cash fund.

I will be happy to retrieve it, and burden the state no longer.

 

[Dux]

Stale bank accounts escheat back to the state. It's their laundry money any way you look at it.

 

[Thunderdragon]

Columbia sc. state capital. has anyone looked at the demographics? Just curious…

 

[ShadowMan]

HELLOOOOOO..................it's a CIA BLACK account! Best leave it alone if they know what's good for them.

 

[BornFree]

There must have been some recent activity or else the State would have swiped it. Oh wait....

 

[sassy]

I don’t suppose they thought of giving the money back to the tax paying people of South Carolina.

 

[Elza]

It's mine. The Nigerian Prince that promised it to me must have gotten the account numbers mixed up.

 

[AlfaMan]

It's from the Confederate treasury that went missing at the end of the war of Northern Aggression. It's just been sitting there collecting interest.

Got an idea on how to use it-fund a second confederate succession.............

 

[hypoluxo]

Curious. I can’t open a bank account without four forms of ID.

 

[blueinterceptor]

It’s probably an account that holds unclaimed funds. Various accounts that went unused for whatever reason and were transfered to the state. Or Not

 

[Publius]

I don’t suppose they thought of giving the money back to the tax paying people of South Carolina.

Believe it or not they will fight that idea for all it's worth, and no they do not want the people to know there was a big surplus of money.

 

[night driver]

Paging Leo, Leo Wanta.

Please pick up any White Courteay Phone!!!

LEO...LEO WANTA!!!!

 

[ainitfunny]

You're asking the wrong questions.
Ask whether ANY money was TAKEN OUT of this account
and went to whom and for what. And who is authorized to withdraw from this account!

 

[Knoxville's Joker]

Odds are that the systems migration had some missing pieces. Because the system was so broken maybe by design in a few cases this went unnoticed for a while until someone raised an alarm bell.

Could have been some nefarious ill gotten gains, but if that is the case the bad actor either disappeared once it got too big, or it became hands off once it was realized it was growing too fast...