An audit of the Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority is calling for better oversight of the agency.

Yesterday, the State Auditor’s Office released its report on the HTA.

The office says it found “an environment of loose oversight” which failed to adequately procure, monitor and assess the work of its contractors…adding the agency fails to follow its own policies and procedures.

The audit also points out that contractor expenses are reimbursed with little scrutiny and contracts were given or extended without review.

HTA officials say they acknowledge the audit’s recommendations, but it doesn’t provide a complete picture of improvements the organization has made.

Rick Fried is an HTA board member.

He says one of the issues is that the HTA underwent a major management overhaul during the audit’s time period.

Fried says the audit also overlooked the growth of the state’s tourism industry over the last six years, and how the HTA is capitalizing on it by expanding Hawaiʻi’s brand.

You can see the full report below: