"I was thinking the other day that a little while ago, there was speculation that both Hillary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice could run for president. Just that this is discussed should show young women that there are few to no barriers for this next generation," she said.
Luallen became recognized in her first term for her discovery of more than 60 cases of fraud and abuse throughout the state of Kentucky, which led to the indictment and conviction of several public officials under former Gov. Ernie Fletcher.
"It was a very controversial audit," Luallen said. It was so controversial that they had to move one auditor and the files into a jail cell so the files wouldn't get stolen and the auditor would not get hurt, Luallen said.
Most local officials, however, are doing a good job in Winchester, and audits are coming out sound, Luallen said.
In her second term, Luallen wishes to go beyond mere financial audits and expand to performance audits, which she hopes will transform the raw numbers found in the financial audits into actual issues. This will then allow Kentucky to see what it needs to do to change, she said.
Right now Kentucky is facing a rocky financial future, Luallen said. With the price of post-secondary education rising at a rate of 66 percent in the last four years, and the costs of Medicaid and jail upkeep dominating taxes, Kentucky citizens are left in a financial hole, making them unable to compete in the national arena, she said.
"For every 20 kids that enter the ninth grade, only three graduate from college. This only leaves people in Kentucky further behind," Luallen said.
Kentucky's spending on prisons and Medicaid is "outstripping education," Luallen said. Citizens spend four times as much on Medicaid and double on prisons than education, she said.
"This rate will never slow down until we focus on education because the people in prison and on Medicaid are typically not as educated. We can't stop this without improving education," Luallen said.
Luallen currently has been looking into completing several audits that will examine different jails in various Kentucky counties. She is looking at how and where they are spending their money, and she hopes to help with efficiency. Right now, no consistent financial standards exist from jail to jail.
In order to improve the problems that face Kentucky, Luallen said state leaders need to stop focusing on short-term fixes, but instead develop a "sustained commitment to invest money" into programs that will positively affect Kentucky in the future.
"It has been the pattern in Kentucky's government to focus on the short-term issues in short-term ways, and we can't do that anymore," Luallen said.
The lesson to draw from Kentucky's financial situation is that government resources are limited, and that it requires more than just money to improve the state, Luallen said. Kentucky needs to use the small amount of money it has in a more effective way, she said.
It will take everyone in the state, government officials and the citizens, to improve, Luallen said.
"We need to convince our citizens that their voice and their vote matters. We need to engage people in the process of improving the state," she said.
Despite recent speculation that Luallen is considering running for U.S. senator against Mitch McConnell, she has decided to maintain her position as auditor and serve Kentucky within Kentucky.
"I just decided it wasn't the right time. I was just re-elected," Luallen said. "On a personal level, I am a cancer survivor, and it has only been two years. I need to stay very focused and maintain balance in my life. This is the time to be healthy and spend time with my family."
However, Luallen said she is open for future opportunities.
