South Carolina has $1.8 billion but doesn’t know where the money came from or where it should go

By JEFFREY COLLINS
Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina has collected about $1.8 billion in a bank account over the past decade and accountants are trying to figure out where the cash came from and where it was supposed to go. Republican state Sen. Larry Grooms says it is like going to the bank and the president saying he has lots of money in the vault — but no idea who the cash belongs to. It’s the latest trouble with the state’s books and the two agencies — the Treasurer’s Office and Comptroller General —  put in charge of making sure government accounts stay balanced. Grooms says the Comptroller General’s office has been responsive to questions, but the Treasurer’s Office has not.