MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The city of Memphis has released the results of the forensic audit of the Memphis Area Transit Authority after WREG investigators reported last week it was being withheld.
On July 21, WREG Investigators revealed that the city of Memphis spent $600,000 on a forensic audit of the “MATA’s cash flows and transactions” between Jan. 2019 and June 2024.
MATA has been under the microscope after announcing last summer a $60 million shortfall.
The mayor told us then, he was ordering a forensic audit as part of a broader effort to figure out the financial issues.
“We want to make sure that we are doing all that we can to get the organization stabilized,” Mayor Paul Young said in an interview with WREG Investigators in November.
When we asked the city for the final report through the Tennessee Records Act, we received a response that said, “The records requested are exempt from disclosure; therefore, your request is denied.” They cited a statute of the law that basically asserts the attorney-client privilege.
On Monday, the city of Memphis released the results from the financial audit conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The audit confirms what WREG has reported that millions of dollars spent on an office space, in a high-rise downtown, tens of thousands spent on Grizzlies games, and on travel.
Auditors also looked at millions paid to vendors over the last several years. They said that of the 264 invoices received, 45% were missing evidence of invoice approval as required by MATA policy.
The full audit provided by the city of Memphis is below.