Big news…
Forty-two percent of the Minnesota State Legislature wants a state audit of the Minnesota Orchestral Association.
Hullo!
In the great tradition of Song of the Lark British reaction GIFs, here’s Benedict Cumberbatch giving the thumbs up to accountability.
Here’s the full letter from the legislators…
In an interview, Legislative Auditor James Nobles said he would “certainly try” to fulfill the request, but he said his office must be cautious in how extensively it would look at such things as the orchestra’s business plans, private fundraising and ability to pay musicians.
“Beyond how state money is used, I need to understand the expectations, and I do not in any way want to intervene in ongoing labor negotiations,” Nobles said. “I’m very conscious of stepping beyond some boundary.”
Legislative Auditor Jim Nobles said he will take the request under advisement and likely decide within two weeks whether to go forward with an investigation.
Drew McManus has valuable perspective here…
Perhaps unsurprisingly, there’s no mention in the letter about what might actually come about as a byproduct of an investigation. Will the state ask for their money back, will this ordeal poison the well for future funding requests from arts group, or will the request become dead in the water via red tape and political shenanigans?
If you feel that Mr. Nobles should look into the Orchestra’s finances, then perhaps it would be worth sending a short sweet email to him, encouraging him to take up the legislators’ request. You can contact him via the auditor’s website here.
It’s too early to tell what exactly this audit may or may not do, but hey, it’s better than nothing. A huge thank you to the legislators who are doing what they can to help move things forward.
I hate to keep obnoxiously plugging my Facebook page, but if you want to get Minnesota Orchestra lockout news ~~AS IT HAPPENS~~, you’ll want to “like” the SOTL Facebook page. You don’t even need to have a Facebook account to check it out; it’s all public. I post all sorts of interesting things there that don’t make it onto the blog. At some point I need to join the modern age and actually start using my Twitter account, but my wordy self gets frustrated with 140-character limits.
Song of the Lark 