A study on the Court of accounts reports of three metropolitan municipalities (Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir examples)

The study aims to analyze the Court of Accounts Compliance Audit Reports for the 2019–2023 period for three metropolitan municipalities in Turkey: Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir. Court of Accounts audits are an important mechanism for accountability and transparency, demonstrating the effectiveness, efficiency, and regulatory compliance of public resource use. Content analysis was used to assess whether the same errors have been repeated over the years, their sensitivity to audit findings, and whether corrective measures have been taken. The Court of Accounts' findings were categorized, the types of recurring errors were presented in tables, and their relationship to accounting principles was demonstrated. While the findings indicate that in some cases, corrections were made based on the reports, the general trend is that municipalities are repeating the same errors and that audit opinions are not sufficiently heeded. By 2023, the increase in the number and types of errors reveals that the audit culture in local governments has still not been institutionalized. The results indicate that the enforcement power of Court of Accounts reports should be increased, findings other than audit opinions should be considered in decision-making processes, and legislative amendments are necessary. The study contributes to the assessment of local governments' understanding of fiscal discipline and provides a model analysis for other local governments.