The Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI; ) is a national organization headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. Its primary function is the audit and inspection of the accounts of state and administrative bodies.
Council of Commissioners of BAI The council of commissioners is composed of seven commissioners including the chair, the council makes decisions on the following matters:
Policies for audit and inspection and major audit and inspection plans Confirmation of the final accounts of revenues and expenditures of the State Disposition of audit and inspection results Reconsideration Reporting on the Annual Report on the Examination of the Final Accounts of the State Review of Claims The rendering of opinions on the enactment, revision, abolition, interpretation, and application of laws to accounting, audit and inspection Enactment, revision, and abolition of the BAI's regulations BAI's budget requests and the closing of its accounts Exemption from audit and inspection Delegation of audit and inspection Other matters chosen and forwarded by the Chair.
Responsibilities and Functions
Introduction In accordance with Article 97 of the Constitution and Article 20 of the BAI Act, BAI examines the final accounts of revenues and expenditures of the State, audits the accounts of the State and such organizations as prescribed by law, and inspects the work performed by government agencies and the duties of their employees in order to improve the quality of administrative services. BAI is a constitutional agency established under the President, but retains an independent status in terms of its duties and functions.
Duties and functions of BAI in detail are as follows:
Examination of the Final Accounts BAI examines the final accounts of revenues and expenditures of the State every year and reports the results of such examinations to the President and the National Assembly in the next year.
Audit of Accounts BAI regularly audits the accounts of the State and other agencies prescribed by other laws in order to ensure proper and fair accounting. The matters subject to BAI’s audit can be classified into two categories: matters subject to mandatory audit; and matters subject to discretionary audit which would be conducted when BAI deems it necessary, or upon the request of the Prime Minister.
Inspection BAI inspects the works performed by government agencies and the duties of their employees in order to improve the operation and quality of government services.
Disposition of Audit and Inspection Results Judgment on liability for reparation, BAI examines and adjudicates whether an accounting official or any other person is liable for reparation, in accordance with the Act on Liability of Accounting Personnel, Etc.
Request for disciplinary action
BAI may request the responsible Minister or the appointing authorities to take disciplinary action on public officials who fall under causes for disciplinary action as provided for in the State Public Officials Act or other statutes, or who refuse audit and inspection or neglect the submission of documents under the BAI Act without proper reason. Among the requests for disciplinary action, if a request for dismissal has been rejected, BAI may, on its own initiative, request deliberation or review thereof by the disciplinary committee which is established at the immediately higher-level agency, and the chair of the disciplinary committee concerned shall, without delay, notify BAI of the results thereof. For a person to whom the provisions of statutes relating to the disciplinary measures are not applied, or who is deemed to have committed serious irregularities, BAI may request the authorities who appoint or recommend the appointment to dismiss the person concerned. Also, a person who has refused an audit and inspection or neglected submission of documents without proper reason shall be subject to a penal servitude for not exceeding one year or a fine not exceeding KRW 5 million.
Request for correction
In case BAI has found what seems to be illegal or improper as a result of audit and inspection, it may request the responsible Minister, the chief of the pertinent supervisory agency or the chief of the agency concerned to correct or pay more attention to it. When the request is made, the competent Minister, the chief of the pertinent supervisory agency, or the chief of the agency concerned shall comply with such request within a period specified by BAI.
Request for improvement
Should BAI identify inconsistencies or possible improvements in laws and decrees, institutions or administration, as a result of audit and inspection, it may request the Prime Minister, responsible Minister, the chief of pertinent supervisory agency or the chief of the agency concerned to take measures necessary for enactment, revision or abolition of laws and decrees or the improvement of institutions or administration. The head of the agency concerned that receives the request shall notify BAI of the results of the measures taken or the improvement made.
Recommendations
When the results of audit and inspection show that it is inappropriate for BAI to make requests for disciplinary actions, correction, warning, and improvement, or it seems necessary for the chief of the relevant agency to handle the matter on his own initiative or if it is needed for the economy, efficiency, and fairness of administration, BAI may make recommendations or provide advice for improvement to the responsible Minister, the supervisory agency, or the chief of the agency concerned. The competent Minister, the chief of the competent supervisory agency or the head of the agency concerned who has received the recommendation or notification shall notify BAI of the results of the actions taken.
Accusation, etc.
In case where BAI considers that there is a suspicion of crime as a result of audit and inspection, it shall institute an accusation with the public prosecutions authorities. An accusation should be decided by the Council of Commissioners. However, it can request the public prosecutions authorities to investigate without going through the decision process by the Council of Commissioners in case there are apprehension about destruction of evidence or runaway. If it is difficult to directly institute an accusation or an investigation with the public prosecution authorities because of limits on time or place, BAI can request the responsible organizations to take appropriate measures.
Reconsideration If audited entities, pertinent Ministers, appointing authorities, appointment recommending authorities, head of the supervisory agency, or an individual (who has been ordered to make reparation) believe that the BAI’s decisions against them are illegal or unjust, they can submit a request for reconsideration to BAI. Furthermore, BAI may initiate the reconsideration process on its own authority if it finds its decisions inappropriate or unjust due to error or omission of evidence, or its requests and recommendations illegal or unjust as long as such a finding has been made within two years after the decision. If the BAI’s rulings of reconsideration are not acceptable, the parties concerned can file an administrative litigation against BAI.
Claims Review Any person who has an interest in a disposition concerning the duties of a person subject to BAI’s audit and inspection or other activities prescribed by BAI regulations may request BAI to review it. BAI will review the case and communicate the results of its review to the individual who has made the claim and the head of the relevant agency. The head of the relevant agency must take measures in accordance with the BAI’s decision. The individual can file an administrative litigation against the relevant agency by reason of his dissatisfaction with the agency’s measures.
Civil petition services and the 188 hotlines BAI examines at firsthand or consigns the internal audit and inspection institutions to examine civil affairs handed out by petitioners or sent from other agencies, or illegal or improper matters reported through 188 hot lines. As a result of audit and inspection, BAI may request the responsible organizations correction or appropriate measures and notify the result of audit and inspection to the petitioner or the 188 reporters.
Expression of Opinions Government agencies should ask for BAI’s opinions when the enacting, revising or abolishing relevant laws concern accounting, powers of BAI or internal audit and inspection. Should accounting officials of entities subject to BAI’s audit and inspection request advisory opinions concerning the interpretation of accounting laws, BAI will provide its authoritative interpretation.
Audit Activities The audit and inspection system of Korea has a 1,300 year-old history. During the times of the dynasties, it focused on uncovering wrongdoings of government officials. After the government of the Republic of Korea was established, and pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution of 1948, the Board of Audit was founded under the President of the Republic as the supreme audit institution (SAn. In accordance with the provisions of the Government Organization Act of 1948, the Commission of Inspection was also established under the President to supervise and inspect the duties of the employees of central and local governments, government-invested organizations, and other organizations prescribed by law.
Because the work of the Board of Audit and the Commission of Inspection was in many cases so closely related, the revised Constitution of 1962 prescribed that these two organizations be merged. The Board of Audit and Inspection Act of 1963 established the current Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) on March 20,1963.
In recent years, the Korean people have had high expectations for economic revitalization, national competitiveness, and transparent government. In response, the Korean government has been demanding both a bold restructuring in the public sector and the eradication of corrupt practices. Within this environment, the BAI has identified three directions for its audit operations: audits to promote reform, productivity audits, and open audits. The BAI expects that its efforts will increase the effectiveness of government reform measures, help eradicate an environment that nurtures corrupt practices, promote creativity and responsiveness in public service, and encourage popular participation in audits and prompt responses to the interests of the public at large.
Among all these years development of society was made by the government and some of them are listed below-
Audit on Imposition and Collection of Major Charges Audit on the Smart City Development Project Audit on the Demographic Crisis II - Focusing on Old-age Income Security Audit on the Management of Consumer Chemical Products Audit on the Demographic Crisis I - Focusing on Regional Areas Audit on Personal Information Protection Audit on the Status of Taxation Data Processing and Utilization Mid-and Long-Term Fiscal Management II Mid and Long-term Fiscal Management I Audit on Status of National Safety Diagnosis Program Development of Pohang Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) Project. Safety Management of Chemical Handling Facilities Safety Management of Nuclear Power Plants Operation of Emergency Medical Centers Fine Dust Management Prevention and Control of Quarantinable Infectious Diseases Status of Efficiency and Soundness of Local Education Finance Safety Management of Power Supply Facilities Status of Operation and Management of Long-Term Care Institutions Insufficient Information Sharing Between National Fire Agency (NFA) and Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) Insufficient Utilization of Standard Analysis Models for Public Big Data / Insufficient Utilization of Data on Crime Hot Spots When Analyzing and Designating New CCTV Locations