Ohio Auditor of State Dave Yost may think that language used in his recent audit of the now defunct Southeast Ohio Emergency Medical Services ambulance company is purely semantics. It isn’t.

Earlier this year Yost released an audit saying that the former emergency medical service owed Lawrence County more than $300,000.

Since the other two members of the service, Athens and Jackson counties, refuse to do the right thing by honoring their obligations and paying their debt, the county sent the issue to Atty. Gen. Mike DeWine.

DeWine said he needs more information to assist in collection of the money, essentially saying the problem is that it was not listed as a “finding for recovery” in Yost’s audit.

So far Yost’s office has not acted upon this, saying that they have not seen any documentation that findings should be issued.

Well it doesn’t take an accountant to see that something simply doesn’t add up.

The state auditor clearly said the Southeast Ohio Emergency Medical Services owed Lawrence County the money. If that is not a finding for recovery, I don’t know what is.

The Lawrence County Commissioners have said they will continue to pursue collecting the money, as they should.

Dave Yost and his staff have a responsibility to make sure that everything is done to empower Lawrence County to recover the money the state determined the county was owed. There are more than 300,000 reasons why Yost has to take a stand for the taxpayers.