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Audit Objective

Determine whether financial information was made available to the City Council and City officials for the effective management of operations.

Key Findings

The City Council and officials did not have adequate financial information for the effective management of operations and, as a result, the City lost its credit rating.

• The City Comptroller failed to file the required annual financial report (AUD) with our office for fiscal years 2016 through 2019.
• The Council did not take sufficient action to acquire financial information.
• No audited financial statements have been issued since the 2015 fiscal year because City officials have not provided their independent auditors with the necessary financial information.
• City officials did not have financial information available to develop a multiyear or capital plan.
• City officials did not establish policies and procedures to ensure that critical financial information, such as budget-to-actual reports or cash flow reports, is received.

Key Recommendations

• Update and develop policies and procedures to ensure the Council and City officials are provided with accurate and complete financial information.
• Ensure that the AUD is filed timely and any other mandatory financial reporting is completed within the required timeframes.

OSC received separate responses from the Mayor/Council and City Comptroller. Officials disagreed with certain findings in our report. Appendix C includes OSC’s comments on their responses.