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I see the role of the performance auditor as that of a defender of the taxpayer.The performance auditor has the task of determining if the resources afforded the government entity by the taxpayer are being used in the roles they were intended.The text (Government Performance Audit in Action 4th ed.Ives & Hancox) describes on page 6 that "Taxpayers want to know that government mangers are using tax dollars efficiently and effectively." The idea that this is accomplished by just looking at the accounting books is not sufficient.The performance auditor needs to know how the programs and services provided by the government are performing to expectations.This may mean tracking internal controls or environments to ensure that programs are doing what they promise.For example a government entity that provides loans for housing, I as the taxpayer want to know intrinsically how much that program costs and if the program was on or off budget.But, more importantly, I would want to know how many people were assisted by the program and were the number of people assisted proportionate to the amount spent. So, as the text suggests on page 9, that the performance auditor is there to ensure accountability to the taxpayer is "inherent in the governing process".

This accountability also works for an internal audience in management of the government entity.The managers want to know that employees and programs are working for the benefit of the customer (the public & taxpaying audience).

The performance auditor's role is to safe guard both internal (managers) and external (taxpayers) from waste, fraud or general malfeasance.