NASHVILLE - Tennessee made more than $73 million in unemployment overpayments due to fraud and errors over the past six years, according to state auditors.

The state Comptroller's review of various agencies' compliance with federal requirements also found that people legitimately entitled to benefits didn't get them on a timely basis due to backlogs in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

Earlier this month, the department's commissioner, Karla Davis, abruptly resigned with Gov. Bill Haslam's office insisting it was due to "family" considerations and not pressure. Two of Davis' top staffers also abruptly left as well.

The $1.2 billion unemployment insurance program is administered by Labor and Workforce Development officials. The Times Free Press reported in 2011 the U.S. Labor Department found Tennessee had one of the highest "improper payments" in the entire country.

State auditors said they found the department's internal controls for the program were ineffective or non-existent, resulting in overpayments of claims due to fraud or error.