Tribunal de Cuentas de la Provincia de Buenos Aires

The Tribunal de Cuentas (Court of Accounts, called the Honorable Tribunal de Cuentas in its organic law) is the province's administrative control body with jurisdictional functions (Ley 10.869 Article 1; Constitution Article 159). It has a president who is a lawyer and four members (vocales) who are public accountants, all described as irremovable and appointed by the Executive with the agreement of the Senate (Constitution Article 159).

Neither the Constitution nor the organic law sets a fixed term of years. They may be tried and removed in the same form and in the same cases as judges of the Courts of Appeal (Constitution Article 159).

Judges are accused of crimes or faults committed in the performance of their functions before a jury of eleven members made up of the president of the Supreme Court, five lawyers and up to five legislators who are lawyers (Constitution Article 182), and the organic law makes members liable to trial under the jury law (Ley 10.869 Article 6). Repeated unjustified absence or notorious neglect of duty lets the Tribunal ask for the jury to be convened (Article 9).

The Tribunal examines the accounts of the collection and investment of public revenues, provincial and municipal, approves or disapproves them and names the officials responsible, and inspects the offices that administer public funds (Constitution Article 159). It is the only authority that can finally approve or disapprove those accounts (Article 15).

All magistrates and officials must supply the information and documents it requests, and it may summon officials of the audited bodies to give reports and explanations (Articles 12 and 30 bis). Obstruction of its acts or disobedience of its resolutions can be met with warnings, pecuniary charges and fines of two to twenty minimum salaries of the provincial public administration (Article 16).

Its President drafts the Tribunal's budget for submission to the Executive and disposes of the funds the law grants it (Article 7). Final resolutions can be appealed to the administrative-litigation courts of appeal (Article 31), and the State Attorney (Fiscal de Estado) brings the actions to enforce them (Constitution Article 159). The Tribunal publishes a quarterly bulletin of its resolutions, rulings, circulars and opinions (Article 45).