The Democratic nominee for state auditor, ZeNai Brooks, is a licensed CPA and works as an auditor for several community organizations, including non-profits.
“It’s not a job where we go in and try to catch people doing something wrong,” Brooks said. “I served as an auditor for mostly non-for-profit organizations over the past seven or eight years and it’s really coming alongside them as a partner and making sure they’re in compliance with their granting or regulations.”
For Brooks, that means making reports transparent enough that anyone can read and understand it, not just someone well-versed in legal jargon.
As auditor, Brooks would oversee the state’s transparency portal, where Hoosiers can see how the state spends taxpayer dollars.
“(It’s) helping people understand how the state’s spending money, where it’s going and is the money being properly allocated,” Brooks said. “It’s all part of being able to paint the financial picture so people have a way of understanding it.”
Brooks wouldn’t be the first Black woman in a statewide position – that distinction goes to former Attorney General Pamela Carter – but would be the first Black woman to be audito
“It’s an opportunity to add transparency and accessibility, to add diversity to our state’s political climate,” Brooks said. -- Indiana Capital Chronicle