۱٫ Introduction Performance auditing helps to make public sector bodies accountable to citizens and other stakeholders (Federation of European Accountants, 2015). Performance auditing is established according to international standards (INTOSAI, 2013). In general, there is little evidence-based knowledge concerning the implementation of performance auditing (Reichborn-Kjennerud, 2013). Hence, this research note’s aim is to achieve a better understanding of performance auditing in general by examining the theoretical, legal and methodological background of performance auditing related to environmental issues of the public sector in Germany. The German approach is interesting, as the term performance auditing is not common and guidelines do not exist[1]. After a general discussion of the goals and boundaries of performance auditing with an environmental perspective, the following describes the theoretical, legal and methodological background of performance auditing in Germany and shows how the principles of performance auditing are considered in Germany. The findings are based on a sample of audits related to environmental issues conducted in Germany.

۲٫ Performance auditing

Audits and evaluations have become important tools for providing information about how public money is spent (Reichborn-Kjennerud, 2013). Performance auditing provides an independent assessment of the performance of a government organization, program, activity or function and facilitates decision-making by parties with responsibility to oversee or initiate corrective action (Dittenhofer, 2001). Performance auditing is defined by the standards of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) as an “independent, objective and reliable examination of whether government undertakings, systems, operations, programs, activities or organizations are operating in accordance with the principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness and whether there is room for improvement” (INTOSAI, 2013). Therefore, the so-called “three Es” form the core of performance auditing. As characterized by International Standard of Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAI) 300, the term economy means minimizing the costs of resources. It addresses the time, the quantity and quality of the resources at the best price. Hence, this principle can be seen as the usual standard for all audits. However, there are two additional principles stating performance auditing which are focusing not only on the resources but also on the output. The principle of efficiency describes the relationship between resources used and the output. Therefore, the major focus is on managing the resources in such a way that the output is maximized for any given resource input (Nath et al., 2005) in terms of quantity, quality and timing. Efficiency is closely related to the concept of “productivity”. The audit will deal with issues such as considering whether outputs or results have been produced cost-effectively (European Court of Auditors, 2015).