San Diego Audit Committee Meeting: October 27, 2021
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San Diego Audit Committee Meeting - October 27, 2021
The San Diego City Audit Committee met virtually on October 27, 2021, at 5:00 PM UTC (10:00 AM local time) to consider three major agenda items: a performance audit of the city's general fund user fees, a performance audit of information technology (IT) service delivery, and the Office of the City Auditor's semi-annual recommendation follow-up report. The meeting was conducted under Executive Order N-21, suspending certain Brown Act requirements, and was televised and live-streamed. All committee members were present: Vice Chair Lacava, Committee Member Halpern, Committee Member Tapsuri, and Committee Member Mafia. Staff presentations covered detailed findings, and the committee voted unanimously on each item.
Consent Calendar
- The committee approved the consent calendar unanimously, with all members voting yes and no additional comments.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public speakers were present for any agenda item. The non-agenda public comment period also had no speakers.
Discussion Items
- Item 1A: Performance Audit of the City's General Fund User Fees – City Auditor Andy Hanao, Principal Performance Auditor Nathan Otto, and Performance Auditor Jeff Teal presented. The audit found that the city collects about $20 million annually in user fees to support programs costing $50 million. Key findings: the comprehensive user fee study reports should include additional details (e.g., fee volume, revenue, costs) and present all departments together; Parks and Recreation's fees have not been adjusted since FY16, leading to an estimated $1 million in foregone revenue; most departments (72% of fees) have been updated since FY16, but benchmarking against other jurisdictions is inconsistent. The Department of Finance agreed to implement all recommendations. Vice Chair Lacava moved to accept the report and forward to city council; the motion passed unanimously.
- Item 2: Performance Audit of Information Technology Service Delivery Effectiveness – Principal IT Performance Auditor Steve Gomez presented. The city spends over $100 million annually on IT services. A survey of city employees showed overall positive satisfaction, but identified areas for improvement: help desk resolution (22% of issues partially or not resolved), SAP outages, VPN performance, GIS data quality, and IT budget transparency. Seven recommendations were made, all accepted by the Department of IT. Vice Chair Lacava moved to accept the report and forward to city council; the motion passed unanimously.
- Item 3: Office of the City Auditor's Recommendation Follow-up Report – Deputy City Auditor Danielle Knighton presented. As of June 30, 2021, there were 198 open recommendations across 47 reports. During the reporting period, 35 recommendations were implemented, and an interactive dashboard was launched. Chief Compliance Officer Christina Gauger provided an update on management's progress, highlighting three recommendations requiring additional review. Committee Member Tapsuri led a detailed review of overdue recommendations, with department directors providing status updates. Notable discussions included: the need for a pay equity study, delays in the AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure) implementation, and the status of various audits. The committee voted to accept the report and requested that the Public Utilities Department's customer support division and AMI implementation audits return with completed recommendation implementation work plans.
Key Outcomes
- Votes: All three discussion items were approved unanimously by the committee (4-0-0).
- Directives: The committee requested that the Economic Development Department fully implement two outstanding recommendations from the Business and Industry Incentive program audit. Additionally, the Public Utilities Department was directed to create recommendation implementation work plans for the water billing and AMI audits.
- Next Steps: The next Audit Committee meeting was scheduled for November 17, 2021, at 9:00 AM. The committee noted the retirement of Andrea Tevlin and discussed the ongoing search for her replacement as IBA (Independent Budget Analyst). Budget season preparation was highlighted, with expectations to see audit recommendations reflected in the FY23 budget.
Meeting Transcript
Yes, we do have a we'll get started and good morning to everybody. Uh per executive order night 21, which suspends certain requirements of the Brown Act. The committee members will be participating via Zoom, and no member of the public will be in attendance at the meeting in the interest of public health and safety. In addition, this meeting is being televised and live streamed on the city's website, and the committee liaison has made arrangements for the public to comment using the Zoom webinar platform. We do appreciate the public's cooperation. First, I'm going to go over the specifics on how to join the webinar and we'll give details on how the public can offer their public testimony. I'm now going to call the audit committee of October 27th, 2021 to order. I'm going to call, uh I'm going to do the uh call the roll. Uh Vice Chair Lacava. Present. Committee member Halpern. Present. Member Tapsuri. Present. Member Mafia, Mafia. Present. Wonderful. Each committee member is attending virtually. Also on the virtual meeting is Christina Gauger. She's the chief compliance officer. Uh Lisa Byrne with the office of the IBA. Heather Ferbert with the City Attorney's Office and our City Auditor Andy Hanao. The public may view the meeting on the public television on City TV channel 24 for Cox Communication and Time Warner Cable or Channel 99 for ATT. Or you could view the meeting online by going to the City Council Committee homepage at Sandiego.gov and selecting the City TV Live webcast blue button on the right hand side of the page. Members of the public can offer public comment on items by accessing the Zoom webinar online using a desktop, computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone, or by calling into the meeting using a smartphone, cellular phone, or landline. The link to join the committee meeting webinar by computer, tablet, or smartphone is listed on the agenda on how to join by iPhone one tap. To join the Zoom webinar by telephone, you could dial either 1669 2545252 when prompted, input webinar ID number 161 73853 pound. When I introduce the item you would like to comment on, you will raise your hand by either tapping the raise your hand button or by pressing star nine on your phone. You're going to be taken in the order in which you raise your hand. Or he's going to read out the last four digits of your phone number if you've called into the meeting. If you've joined the webinar by computer, tablet, or smartphone, you're going to receive a pop-up notice to select to unmute your device. If you've called into the meeting by cell landline or landline, please press star six on your phone to unmute yourself. I'm going to review these instructions briefly again when the public comment period on an item is open. And please wait until the item you wish to speak to has been called before raising your hand to speak. If you raise your hand during a non-comment period, your hand's going to be lowered. When you're announced as the next speaker, please unmute yourself unmute yourself and offer your comments. Also, don't forget to mute the volume on your TV or computer before you begin to speak. Well, so moved. Thank you. May I have a second? Halburn second. Halpern second. Okay, now we're going to take any uh committee member questions or comments and please have each member register their vote. Uh Vice Chair Lakava. No comments, I vote yes. Uh committee member Halpern. No comments, I vote yes. Committee member Tapsuri. No comments, I vote yes. And committee member Mafia.
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