JIS – $70.4 Million Excess Expenditure Above Approved Budget Ceiling

Auditor General's Findings

The 2023/2024 Auditor General’s Annual Report (subsections 3.2.123–3.2.128) found that Section 3.7(vii) and Section 7.9.3(i) of the Financial Instructions stipulate adherence to approved budget ceilings and prohibit the Accounting Officer from reallocating the approved budget for certain Objects, including Object 21 (Compensation of Employees), Object 23 (Rental of Property and Machinery) and Object 24 (Utilities and Communication Services).

Contrary to this requirement, The Jamaica Information Services (JIS) exceeded its approved budget by $70.4 million for FY2021/2022 and incurred excess expenditure of $15.35 million on these prohibited Objects without the requisite approval.

JIS’s failure to keep expenditure within its approved budget undermines the GoJ’s budgetary control process and results in budget overrun.

Permanent Secretary (current): Kasan Troupe

Breach Category: Resource Management

Permanent Secretary (at breach): Kasan Troupe

Breach Type: Exceeded Approved Budget Allocation

Status: Full Compliance

Last Assessed: July 7, 2026

Year Reported: 2024

Year Resolved: 2026

Recommendation

The Auditor General Department (AuGD) recommended that, given these weaknesses were highlighted in the last Annual Report, and following the reminder to JIS of the necessity to strictly comply with the Appropriation Act and Financial Instructions, JIS should promptly take action to improve the Agency’s commitment control process to prevent excess expenditure and unauthorized reallocation of appropriated funds.

Management accepted the recommendation and informed the AuGD of its intention to seek approval from the Ministry of Finance (MoF) to use the surplus Appropriation in Aid (AIA) to offset expenditure exceeding the approved budget. Additionally, JIS committed to continuous improvement of the Agency’s budgetary control process to ensure compliance with the Appropriation Law and Financial Instructions.

JAMP Update

JIS responded to JAMP on June 25, 2026, advising that it has implemented several measures to strengthen compliance with approved budget ceilings: enhanced internal monitoring and early-alert systems, scheduled Finance Department compliance reviews, escalation protocols for AIA adjustments, executive-level reinforcement of financial discipline with managers, and continued provision of monthly Income and Expenditure Statements.

JIS also advised that it has been engaging the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service on matters of over-expenditure. It wrote to the MOF on January 8, 2025 requesting approval for excess expenditure of $17,997,436 incurred in the 2022/2023 financial year, and received a response from the MOF dated February 17, 2025. JIS further advised that it wrote to the MOF again on January 30, 2026, seeking authorisation to exceed its 2025/2026 and 2026/2027 budgetary allocations using GCT refunds. This was due to the absence of a capital budget allocation for three consecutive years (2023/24, 2024/25, and 2025/26).

Taken together, JIS has been making efforts to comply with the AG’s recommendation, having strengthened its internal controls, requested MOF approval for excess expenditure for the current financial year, and proactively sought approval for anticipated excess expenditure in 2025/2026 and 2026/2027.

For more detail, see ATI response below.