Item B - Ind. External Auditor - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

unusual circumstances, for example, evidence of fraud by top management." She said that much of the information the council received from the committee was conflicting. Ms. Nathanson asked how many people worked in the Portland city auditor's office. Mr. Carlson believed there were a total of 56 people working in the Portland auditor's office. Ms. Nathanson said she heard no clarity in the discussion about the nature of the position envisioned. It was unclear if councilors were talking about a performance auditor or a financial auditor. She believed the public wanted to know there was no fraud in municipal operations, and there were financial audits to ensure that happened. Ms. Nathanson believed that the organizational credibility of the organization relied in part on the credibility of the council, and how well it managed the City's affairs. She asked how Mr. Carlson would characterize the auditor role authorized through the fiscal year 2003 budget. Mr. Carlson characterized it as an independent audit performed under contract by an independent auditor. Ms. Nathanson thought such an independent audit would serve as well in terms of expertise and independence. She said she had too many questions to support a solution when the problem was not yet adequately described. Mr. Rayor, seconded by Mr. Pap~, moved to amend the motion with the following substitute text: "The City Manager shall appoint a City performance auditor, subject to confirmation by the City Council. The performance auditor shall conduct or cause to be conducted performance audits and may conduct studies intended to measure or improve the performance of City functions. The performance auditor shall regularly report the results of their work, as well as the annual performance work plan to an audit committee consisting of the Budget Committee or a subcommittee of the Budget Committee." Mr. Kelly solicited comments on the amendment to the motion. Speaking in support of his amendment, Mr. Rayor said it created a new city auditor position subject to confirmation by the manager. He did not want to create a new committee through the charter that could not be maintained because of funding or one that represented a duplication of efforts. Mr. Farr preferred Mr. Rayor's motion over the previous motion, but still questioned the need for a performance auditor. He agreed with Ms. Nathanson's statement about the City's ability to hire independent expertise. He thought it would be irresponsible, given the economic difficulties facing the City, to refer such a position to the ballot. Ms. Bettman considered council resistance to the concept of an internal independent auditor to be "astounding." She said that such an auditor would assist the council in its evaluation of the manager, and would help inform budget policy. She said that without council oversight, the motion on the floor was just a wordier version of the manager's proposal. She termed it "auditing under the influence of the supervisory chain," and pointed out that it was the supervisory chain of which the council wanted independent evaluation. Ms. Bettman did not think the focus of the discussion was on financial malfeasance but rather on overcoming the personal and professional alliances that existed among staff that make it impossible for staff to move beyond those alliances. An independent auditor could look objectively at the organization and provide the manager with an outside recommendation. She said that the City had