Budget and Audit Committee Meeting June 16, 2026: Homeless Shelter Audit and Work Plan Update
Budget and Audit Committee Meeting: June 16, 2026
The Sacramento Budget and Audit Committee met on June 16, 2026, at 11:08 a.m. (adjourned at 12:41 p.m.) to consider an audit of the city's homeless sheltering programs and a proposed update to the City Auditor's Fiscal Year 2026/27 Work Plan. The committee unanimously approved both items, forwarding them to the full City Council. Public comment addressed contract procurement practices and sponsorship agreements.
Consent Calendar
- Item 1: Budget and Audit Committee Meeting Minutes (May 26, 2026) – Approved unanimously (4-0) as part of the consent calendar.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Lambert (speaking on the audit and general matters): Expressed concern that suspending competitive bidding for shelter contracts leads to cost disparities and outcomes not aligned with city goals. Also raised allegations of improper sponsorship checks (North Sacramento Economic Development Investment Initiative) without written agreements, urging the council to investigate.
- No other public speakers for items 2 or 3; one speaker for matters not on the agenda.
Discussion Items
2. Audit of the City’s Homeless Response: Evaluation of Costs and Outcomes of Sheltering Programs
- City Auditor Farishta Ahrary presented the audit, which covered 14 city-funded shelter programs from FY23-25. Key findings:
- Total expenditures of $63.2 million (FY24-25), with 27% from general fund/Measure U and 73% from state and other sources.
- 20% of clients had permanent positive exits; 28% improved but not permanent; 39% negative exits; 12% unknown (likely negative).
- Cost per occupied bed per night varied widely; no clear correlation between spending per positive exit and positive exit rates (e.g., EBH at the Grove and City Motel achieved relatively strong outcomes at lower cost per exit).
- Some larger congregate shelters have capacity gaps between contracted capacity, maximum occupancy, and building code limits; adding beds could cost as little as $6–$23 per night per bed.
- Current HMIS data limits analysis; 42% of participants assessed as both document- and housing-ready, but lack of affordable housing and treatment beds hinders exits.
- Good neighbor policies lack defined radius of responsibility; recommendations include establishing clear boundaries (examples from other jurisdictions range from 100 ft to 2,640 ft).
- Committee discussion (Councilmembers Maple, Talamantes, Guerra, Chair Dickinson):
- Maple emphasized moving away from congregate shelters, improving data consistency, enforcing good neighbor policies, and the need for council consensus on system-wide goals.
- Talamantes highlighted the challenge of frequent utilizers, data coordination with county/hospitals, and questioned service participation requirements (only 2 of 14 shelters require services).
- Guerra noted difficulty comparing outcomes across different populations and stressed alignment with county and state partners.
- Dickinson called for better characterization of negative exits, further analysis of site-specific factors (e.g., Roseville Road), and stressed prevention as a key strategy.
- Motion and Vote: Moved by Guerra, seconded by Talamantes. Unanimous (4-0) to accept the audit and forward to City Council.
3. Proposed Update to the City Auditor’s Fiscal Year 2026/27 Work Plan
- City Auditor Ahrary requested an amendment to add an audit of the Police Department’s traffic stops, focusing on compliance with AB 2773, pretextual stop indicators, complaint management, and supervisory monitoring. Noted potential access issues being resolved with the City Attorney.
- Committee discussed rebalancing four upcoming audits: pedestrian safety, police overtime, financial management/budgeting, and the new traffic stop audit. Priority order agreed:
- Traffic stop audit (and forensic audit already in plan)
- Pedestrian safety audit
- Police overtime audit (to be deferred)
- Vice Mayor Talamantes specified scope: assessment of AB 2773 implementation, traffic stop practices, pretextual stops, supervisory oversight, complaint management, and recommendations for compliance, transparency, and public trust. Directed the auditor to report any access hurdles to council in closed session.
- Motion and Vote: Moved by Talamantes, seconded by Maple. Unanimous (4-0) to approve the updated work plan with the defined scope and forward to City Council.
Key Outcomes
- Item 2 (Homeless Shelter Audit): Motion passed (4-0) to accept the audit report and accompanying fact book and forward to City Council for final approval.
- Item 3 (Work Plan Update): Motion passed (4-0) to add the police traffic stop audit to the FY 2026/27 work plan, with scope as outlined by Vice Mayor Talamantes, and to forward the revised plan to City Council. Police overtime audit and pedestrian safety audit will proceed later as resources allow.
- The committee adjourned at 12:41 p.m. to a closed session with four items: litigation initiation, labor negotiations (Police Officers Association and Firefighters Local 522), public employee discipline, and performance evaluation of the City Attorney.
Meeting Transcript
I got a lot try-logging. This is like protein related. There you go. Okay. Good morning. We'll call the order of the budget and audit committee meeting for June 16th, 2026. We're getting underway a little late. We apologize for that. I think it's probably smart to establish a quorum. Thank you, Vice Mayor Telemonte. Here. Councilmember Maple. I am here. Councilmember Garrett is expected momentarily. And Chair Dickinson. You have a quorum. Thank you. And Councilmember Maple, would you mind doing the question? It would be my honor. Please rise if you're able. Rice for the opening acknowledgments in honor of Sacramento's indigenous people and tribal lands. To the original people of this land, the Nissanong people, the Southern Mighty, Valiant Plains Miwok, Petwin Winchu peoples, and the people of the Wilton Rancheria, Sacramento's only federally recognized tribe. May we acknowledge and honor the native people who came before us and still walk beside us today on these ancestral lands by choosing to gather today in the act of practice of acknowledgement and appreciation for Sacramento's Indigenous People's History, contribution, and lives. Remain standing, salute, and pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God and divisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you very much. If you um want to make public comment on any IMR agenda, you're welcome to do that. Please be sure to spit fill out a speaker form and deliver that down front here to our clerk, and we'll make sure to call on you with appropriate time. Keep in mind that public comment is limited to two minutes per item, and uh there'll be a clock ticking down that'll be visible from the podium. So keep your eye on that to make sure you get everything said that you want to include in your comments. Uh and with that, I think we're ready for item number one, which is the audit of the city's homeless response evaluation and cost and outcomes of sheltering programs. Chair, we do have a consent calendar, item number one. I'm sorry, I jump to I jump to that. Yes, we thank you. We have a motion and a second on the consent items. If there's no further comment, all in favor, signify by saying aye. Aye, opposed say no, any abstentions or objections. Hearing none, the item carries unanimously. And now that I've read item number one, I'm not gonna reread it, but I'm gonna welcome our city auditor. And audit committee, I'm Farish Darari, your city auditor. Uh with me today are Joyce Chi and Ricardo Sanchez Molinero, who are primarily responsible for conducting this audit. Uh, the recommendation before you is to accept the audit of the city's homeless response evaluation of costs and outcomes of sheltering programs, and uh the accompanying fact book and forward it to the full city council for final approval. So I apologize. This presentation is gonna be a little bit longer than typical because there's so much to cover. Um, but first it's a uh recap of our audit objectives at a high level. The audit sought to analyze the various city-funded sheltering programs to understand which shelter program types are most cost-effective and most successful in helping individuals transition to stable housing, with the broader goal of informing future policy decisions and investment strategies. More specifically, the audit examines several areas, including the different shelter models currently funded or operated by the city, the relative costs and outcomes, how effectively program different programs serve diverse populations and needs, and what characteristics or practices appear to be associated with stronger housing outcomes. The audit also aimed to identify broader opportunities to improve the efficiency, coordination, and overall effectiveness of the shelter system, and then we also included a review of our good neighbor policies in that assessment. So I want to emphasize that this audit was not designed as a deep operational review of any single shelter.
openpublica.com