Comptroller Sean Scanlon Announces Enhanced P-Card Requirements, Oversight, And Enforcement Efforts
(HARTFORD, CT) – Comptroller Sean Scanlon issued new guidance to all State of Connecticut purchase card (P-Card) users and coordinators requiring stronger reporting requirements and enforcement efforts for noncompliance.
This new guidance is part of Comptroller Scanlon’s years-long efforts to reform P-Card usage in the wake of several high-profile instances of misuse.
“P-Cards can be a necessary tool to keep government running as efficiently as possible, but their use must be strictly controlled and monitored,” said Comptroller Scanlon. “Our team here at the Comptroller’s Office is working every single day to spot fraud and correct violations, and these new reforms will enhance our ability to do that and hold those who violate the policy accountable.”
In 2024, the Comptroller released a report of his audit of P-Card usage within the leadership of the Connecticut State Colleges and University system. The report included ten recommendations from the Comptroller on how the state could prevent P-Card misuse in the future, the majority of which have been either adopted by CSCU or codified in state law.
Scanlon’s new directive is the result of one of those recommendations. Public Act 25-156: An Act Concerning Government Accountability Regarding Agency Purchase Card Use requires state agencies to set standardized limits on spending, develop a plan for digitizing and uploading receipts to Core-CT, and determine remedies for noncompliance.
Beginning August 1, 2026, agencies must submit an annual report on P-card usage, violations, and enforcement of such remedies. In addition to making recommendations and providing continued technical support to agencies, the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) will take enforcement measures, including possible revocation of P-cards, when policies are consistently violated. Beginning fiscal year 2027, all violations of these policies must be reported to the Office of the State Comptroller on a monthly basis in addition to the annual report.
Agency coordinators and OSC have the authority to revoke P-card usage for any user who is not providing sufficient documentation or who is otherwise not complying with agency policy.
Currently, OSC provides oversight of executive branch agencies’ P-Card programs through a combination of preventive controls and periodic post-audit activities. Selected transactions undergo electronic analysis to identify standard predetermined system errors, and members of the OSC audit team perform judgmental reviews of selected transactions to assess compliance with applicable policies and procedures, as well as to review card declines and fraud referrals daily. All new P-Card requests, credit limit adjustments, and card profile changes require OSC approval, and OSC periodically reviews agency card usage and spending limits to ensure they remain appropriate.
OSC is continuously working to improve oversight on the P-Card program. Enhancements currently in the works include expanding the use of the P-Card administrator’s monitoring tools to support timelier real-time transaction monitoring and providing more frequent and comprehensive training for agency P-Card coordinators and cardholders to strengthen program oversight, internal controls, and compliance with established policies.
In addition to these efforts, all P-card transactions are available on the OpenConnecticut transparency portal through searching “P-card Merchant” on OpenCheckbook. Here, anyone can view agency-by-agency P-Card expenditure details, including vendor, dollar amount, date, type of purchase, and agency.
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