The auditor general of B.C. announced her resignation Wednesday, citing personal reasons.

In a statement, Carol Bellringer said she had handed in her notice to Speaker Darryl Plecas the day before. Her resignation will be effective Dec. 31.

"I have been honoured to serve as B.C.'s auditor general since 2014 and would like to assure all members of the legislative assembly and the public that I will be available to assist with the transition until Dec. 31 and afterwards," she said in a statement.

"The Office of the Auditor General has a strong workforce in place to support changes and its highly professional, skilled staff will ensure that the important work of the office continues as outlined in the operational, service and coverage plans."

Premier John Horgan praised Bellringer's years of service in a statement.

"British Columbians are indebted to Ms. Bellringer for her hard work on behalf of the people of this province. Her diligent work has informed improvements in the way our government is run and in the way programs and services are delivered to the people of this province," Horgan said.

"I am pleased that she will be staying on through the end of the year and to assist with the transition to a successor. I wish her and her family all the best."

Bellringer, who was appointed to the role in 2014, announced her resignation just days after she released an audit into financial policies in B.C.'s legislature.

The 34-page report, released last Thursday, follows months of finger-pointing in a spending scandal that saw two officials suspended due to concerns raised by the Speaker.

"In this audit, we found a number of weaknesses and gaps in the expense policy framework, and where policies were in place, they weren't always followed," Bellinger "Expense Policies and Practices in the Offices of the Speaker, Clerk and Sergeant-at-Arms."

Last fall, clerk Craig James and sergeant-at-arms Gary Lenz were escorted from the legislature as details of purchases including VIP trips and a $13,000 wood splitter and trailer were made public.

Both denied the allegations of misspending, but James was to have "engaged in misconduct." There was no misconduct found in the investigation of Lenz, who hopes to return to his job. James announced in May he was leaving his job citing the impact on his family and reputation.

Bellringer's report came 10 months after the purchases were revealed and work on financial policies is expected to continue.

"The fact that it was so widespread was a surprise," Bellringer told reporters at the B.C. legislature last week.

Bellringer has also released reports on cybersecurity, including one in August that found hundreds of people had unauthorized access to government systems.

According to the report, more than 700 user accounts were still active that hadn't been used in a decade and there were more active user accounts than government employees. Her recommendations following the report included giving proper training to those who access the government's internal directory.

Over the years she's also completed reports on vulnerable youth in care, Indigenous graduation rates and the environmental risks posed by decommissioned oil and gas wells.

This is a breaking news story and will continue to be updated as more information becomes available.

With files from CTV News Vancouver's Kendra Mangione and Bhinder Sajan