Audit Committee Meeting October 12, 2022
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Audit Committee Meeting – October 12, 2022
The Audit Committee of the San Diego City Council met on October 12, 2022, at 5:00 PM UTC (10:00 AM PDT) under teleconference rules per California Government Code Section 54-953E. Chair Stephen Whitburn presided; Vice Chair Moreno was absent. Members present: Stuart Halburn, Andy Mafia, and Tofik Tabshuri. The committee heard a performance audit of the Get It Done app and service request management, received a positive review of central stores inventory, and accepted quarterly fraud and activity reports.
Consent Calendar
- The committee unanimously approved the committee actions from September 21, 2022.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Laura Zoldania (former state legislator) spoke during non-agenda public comment. She questioned "who audits the auditors" and urged the committee to audit the city ethics commission, alleging that political appointees can block investigations recommended by professional staff. She cited a case involving former ethics commission chair Gil Cabrera and his delayed lobbying reports for the Midway Rising project.
- Later, during the fraud hotline item, Ms. Zoldania again stressed that professional staff should retain control of investigations, referencing a complaint she submitted that was referred to the ethics commission but then dropped by political appointees in closed session.
Discussion Items
1. Performance Audit of Get It Done App and Service Request Management
- Presentation by City Auditor Andy Hanous and team (Nathan Otto, Mary Sanchez, Shadi Mattar): The audit found that the Get It Done app has greatly expanded access (nearly 300,000 requests in 2021, double from prior years), but many customers receive limited, confusing, or inaccurate information about their requests. About one in five closure details in a sample of 224 cases were misleading. The team recommended six improvements; management agreed with five but disagreed with Recommendation 6 to establish a centralized 311 phone contact option.
- Response by Kirby Brady, Director of Performance and Analytics (PANDA): She agreed on improved communications but argued that the city should first expand digital services (like self-service for water utility tasks) to reduce call demand before creating a 311 center. She noted that 15–25% of San Diegans lack reliable broadband or smartphones, and that existing call centers (e.g., Public Utilities) are understaffed and overwhelmed. She framed the path as: digitize high-demand services, then build a contact center.
- Committee Discussion: Committee members asked about equity implications (the digital divide) and the impact of non-emergency calls on the SDPD 911 system. Member Halpern emphasized that waiting years to digitize everything would leave behind those who cannot use apps. Member Tabshuri argued both digitization and call center planning could proceed in parallel.
- Motion and Vote: Chair Whitburn moved to accept the audit report, forward it to City Council, and request PANDA to present a customer service strategy and roadmap in the first half of 2023 with the intent of ultimately creating a 311 call center. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously (4–0).
2. Central Stores Inventory Agreed-Upon Procedures Review
- Presentation by Peter George (MGO): The review covered inventory for the year ending June 30, 2022. Out of 1,540 items, 221 were sampled; discrepancies totaled only $24 (0.001% of $1.7 million). Management's new warehouse system was credited. One prior recommendation (handheld scanners) is being implemented this fiscal year.
- Claudia Barca (Purchasing & Contracting) expressed appreciation for staff and confirmed progress on scanners.
- The committee unanimously accepted the report.
3. Quarterly Fraud Hotline Report (First Quarter FY 2023)
- Presentation by Senior Fraud Investigator Andy Horita: The city received 62 reports; 43 were within purview. Twelve were assigned to the City Auditor, 31 to departments. At quarter-end, 52 cases remained open (consistent with prior quarters). Two City Auditor investigations led to corrective actions (COVID vaccine documentation and contracting procedures). Three department investigations were substantiated.
- The committee accepted the report as an information item.
4. City Auditor's Monthly Activity Report
- City Auditor Andy Hanous reported three reports issued since last meeting, two audits in report writing (vehicle towing, 911 IT system), one in fieldwork (contracts for homeless services), and three in planning (CIP, hiring process, fire/brush management). Eight audits are not yet started. He introduced two new performance auditors: Nadia Torkman and Kayla Edwards.
- No action required; committee received the report.
Key Outcomes
- Get It Done Audit: Report accepted and forwarded to City Council. PANDA must deliver a digital services expansion roadmap and 311 call center plan by June 2023.
- Central Stores Inventory: Report accepted; warehouse improvement and scanner implementation continue.
- Fraud Hotline: Report accepted as information.
- Monthly Activity Report: Acknowledged.
Meeting Transcript
Well, greetings everybody. Welcome to today's meeting of the audit committee. Thank you very much for being with us. Until further notice, committee meetings will be conducted pursuant to the provisions of California Government Code Section 54-953E, added by Assembly Bill 361, which allows the city to use teleconferencing and to provide the public an opportunity to address the committee via a call-in option or an Internet-based service option. In addition to being able to attend a meeting in person, this meeting is being televised and live streamed on the city's website. And the committee consultant will continue to help the public comment using the Zoom webinar. Additionally, members of the public who wish to provide testimony via a call-in or internet-based services option must enter the virtual speaking queue within five minutes after the conclusion of in-person public testimony or before the virtual speaking queue is exhausted, whichever occurs first. This will allow for better meeting management between the two platforms and will ensure the council is able to manage and conduct city business. As we go forward, I'll go over the specifics on how to join the webinar and we'll give details on how people can offer public testimony. At this time, I will call to order at the audit committee meeting of Wednesday, October 12th, 2022. And I will now call the roll. Vice Chair Moreno will not be in attendance today. So committee member Halburn. Present. Committee member Mafia. Present. And committee member Tabshuri. Present. And I'm Stephen Whitburn. So we have a quorum. The committee is fortunate to have several attendees that will greatly contribute to our efforts this morning. David Carlin with the Office of the City Attorney. Christiana Gogger, the Chief Compliance Officer, and Amy Lee from the Office of the Independent Budget Analyst. Thanks to each of you for being here. If you're in person, please complete a speaker slip if you would like to speak at this morning's meeting. Uh the speaker slips are located at the entrance of chambers. And you could place a completed uh speaker slip at the box indicated at the speaker's lectern at the front of the room. Please do so in a timely manner to ensure proper meeting management. Members of the public can join the webinar by computer or tablet or smartphone by accessing the link, which is listed online in the preamble language of the agenda on the city's webpage. To join the Zoom webinar by telephone, you may dial either 1669-254-5252 or 1646-828-7666. And when prompted, input the webinar ID, which is 161-700-3853 pound. And that information is also on the agenda.gov and selecting the City TV Live Webcast blue button on the right-hand side of the page. Please note that if you're watching via City TV or online, there may be a delay. Thank you as always to our City TV staff for broadcasting this meeting today. If you are in person, please come up to the reserve seats at the front of the room when your name is called and be prepared to come up to the lectern in the order called. If you join the webinar electronically, you will receive a pop-up notice to select to unmute your device. If you have called into the meeting by cell phone or landline, press star six on your phone to unmute yourself. Please wait until the item that 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 will be lowered. When I introduce the item you'd like to comment on, please raise your hand by either tapping the raise your hand button on your device or by pressing star 9 on your phone. When our committee consultant Juan Carlos Leva indicates that it's your turn to speak, he will call you by your name or he'll read out the last four digits of your phone number. At that time, please unmute your phone by tapping the unmute button on your device or by pressing star six on your phone. Also, please mute the volume on your TV or your computer before you begin to speak. Finally, we will now take up the approval of the committee actions of September 21st, 2022. Juan Carlos, please proceed with public comment. Thank you, Chair. The policy committee uh the policeman period for this item is now open. If you're in person, please be sure to have your speaker slips submitted and come up to the reserved seats at the front of the room when your name is called and be prepared to come on to the lector and the order called. Members of the public who wish to provide testimony via call in or an interface service option must must enter the virtual speaking queue within five minutes after the conclusion of in-person public testimony or before the virtual speaking queue is exhausted. Whichever occurs first.
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