On Dec. 9, 2025, a blistering state audit landed on Maryland's doorstep, accusing the state's personnel office of letting payroll and benefits systems unravel in ways that auditors say have already cost taxpayers millions. The review details a steep overtime surge, hundreds of payroll blunders, and thousands of health-plan participants with unpaid premiums. All of it is hitting just as lawmakers and budget officials are wrestling with tight state finances and far less room for expensive mistakes.
Audit: Overtime Soars As Premiums Go Unpaid
According to the Office of Legislative Audits, statewide overtime costs rose from $231.3 million in 2021 to $342.6 million in 2024, a roughly 48 percent jump that added more than $100 million over three years. Auditors identified 7,574 health-plan participants with unpaid premiums in 2024, totaling about $5 million, and reported that OPSB continued to fund claims for roughly 5,800 of those participants into January 2025. The report also found contract and fee errors that may have overpaid plan administrators by between $3.3 million and $6.6 million and concluded that OPSB "did not have effective procedures to ensure the propriety of employee benefits."
Payroll Errors And Overtime Outliers Pile Up
Auditors also called out basic payroll failures that should have been caught long before the audit team showed up. A total of 915 employees stayed on the payroll even after separating from state service, 23 separated employees were paid roughly $135,100, and 130 workers collected about $740,000 despite not submitting required timesheets, as reported by FOX45 News. The review further found that nearly 800 state employees consistently earned more in overtime than in their base pay and spotlighted a small group of workers who repeatedly took home roughly double their salaries through overtime. "This is alarming, because this is basic common sense and basic oversight that’s not being carried out by the state," taxpayer advocate David Williams said.
State Response And Why It Matters For The Budget
DBM's written response, included in the audit appendix, acknowledged staffing shortages at 24/7 facilities and warned that some of the audit's recommendations might bring only "marginal improvements," according to the Office of Legislative Audits. Auditors urged OPSB to tighten contract language, complete overdue eligibility audits, and go after improper payments that have already gone out the door, although some of the proposed fixes are not slated for completion until 2026 and 2027. The findings land against a backdrop of multibillion-dollar budget pressure for Maryland, a fiscal squeeze that makes every lost payroll dollar harder to absorb, as described by The Washington Post.
