Acting comptroller hits back after Scutari criticism

Acting Comptroller Kevin Walsh on Thursday defended the work of his office in response to recent criticisms from state Senate President Nick Scutari.

Scutari told reporters Tuesday he believes some state watchdog agencies could be consolidated. When asked why the Senate hasn’t confirmed Walsh more than four years after his nomination to the role, Scutari said he wasn’t sure Walsh would have the results and criticized the amount of work done by the office.

Walsh defended his office’s record, which includes 90 reports, the removal of 850 bad providers from New Jersey’s Medicaid program, and more than 400 referrals to state and federal agencies to report legal and ethical noncompliance.

“From fiscal year 2020 through fiscal year 2024, [the Office of the State Comptroller] recouped over $538 million in taxpayer funds as a result of our work, which is 12 times more than the state funds we received during that time,” Walsh wrote. “The suggestion that our funds have not been spent well is clearly wrong.”

Scutari made the comments after he was asked about the resignation of Tiffany Williams Brewer, the head of the State Commission of Investigation who left the role after four days when an Asbury Park Press report found she lived in Maryland and worked another full-time job in D.C.

“I think the concern is the amount of money that office has spent without one single indictment in all these years,” Scutari told reporters about the comptroller’s office on Tuesday. “I mean, that office has spent an extraordinary amount of money on investigations and producing reports that have not resulted in one criminal charge.”

Walsh said Scutari’s criticism of the lack of criminal charges is “misguided.” The comptroller said the office is strictly a civil oversight agency without the authority to initiate criminal proceedings. But he said the office works closely with law enforcement and has made more than 200 referrals to law enforcement agencies.

Walsh said he’s repeatedly offered to testify before the Legislature about the office’s work, but the offers have never been accepted.

“I specifically sought to report on our work during budget hearings last year and wasn’t called to testify,” Walsh wrote. “So it is surprising that the Senate President, while discussing a completely different legislative watchdog agency, publicly raised concerns about OSC’s budget.”

Walsh, a frequent target of politicians throughout the state, will likely not be confirmed by the end of Gov. Phil Murphy’s term. 

Scutari said he will likely not override the senatorial courtesy of state Sens. Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D-Barrington) and James Beach (D-Voorhees), who would not sign off on his nomination (senatorial courtesy allows state senators to block gubernatorial nominees from their home districts and counties). The pair have not said why they refuse to sign off on his nomination.

“I am proud of the efforts we made to reduce fraud, waste, and abuse in New Jersey,” Walsh wrote. “Our work shows the importance of an independent check on government because corruption and politics often go hand-in-hand. I will continue to do this work with integrity and independence.”