MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - A single human error was the likely cause of the Vermont Department of Labor sending thousands of tax documents to the wrong people earlier this year, according to a report into the cause of the incident.
The report released Monday by the office of state Auditor of Accounts Doug Hoffer found there were inadequate controls in place to catch the error.
The mistake led to the state Department of Labor to recall thousands of 1099-G forms sent to people who received unemployment assistance that included names, addresses and Social Security numbers.
The state reissued the correct documents and offered identify theft protection to people affected by the error.
Gov. Phil Scott asked for the audit after the problem was discovered earlier.
The Brattleboro Reformer reports a second part of the audit, focusing on how the Department of Labor handles personally identifying information, has yet to begin.
The audit was done by an agency hired by Hoffer’s office.
The auditors could not recreate the mistake, but they traced it to an Agency of Digital Services employee. The report also said the Department of Labor implemented controls to prevent a recurrence of the error.
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