The Monarch Fire Protection District, in West St. Louis County, should expect to be audited later this year after Gov. Jay Nixon ordered the State Auditor’s Office to perform an audit of the fire district. The governor gave the order after reviewing allegations against the fire district sent by the State Auditor’s Office. Gary McElyea, spokesman for the auditor’s Office couldn’t go into details of the allegations but says they were serious enough for the office to request in July 2010 that the governor order an audit.
Allegations were made by the fire district’s treasurer, according to a letter sent to Gov. Nixon by State Auditor Thomas Schweich.
The Monarch Fire Protection District covers more than 60,000 residents in Ballwin, Chesterfield, Clarkson Valley, Creve Coeur, Maryland Heights, Wildwood and unincorporated St. Louis County. The district began in 1925 as a small volunteer fire department. It continued to grow in size, eventually becoming a fully staffed and operational fire district in 1962.