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Auditor Home
Accomplishments for Fiscal Year 2006 and 2007 Key Objectives for Fiscal Year 2008 & 2009 Significant Changes from Prior Year's Budget |
"Ask the Auditor": How does the City Auditor's office make a difference to you as a Berkeley resident? (Appeared in Berkeley Voice, 5/21/07) By Ann-Marie Hogan, City Auditor, City of Berkeley How does the City Auditor’s office make a difference to you as a Berkeley resident? First, our performance audits can answer some questions you’ve always had about how the City works. · Why are some City streets so much bumpier than others? See “Follow up Audit of Public Works Construction contracts” presented to Council February 27 at www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/auditor (or contact my office if you’d like the report mailed to you). · Which is more expensive, paying overtime or hiring additional staff? What is the cost of employee benefits? See “Fire Department Lost Time and Overtime”, item 18 on the City Council agenda for May 22, 2007 at www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/citycouncil/agendaindex.htm Secondly, our audits provide a blueprint for avoiding inefficiencies and risk in City programs and practices. Because the City Auditor is elected by the voters, our auditors are fully independent of the City’s management. Moreover, unlike consulting firms, we have a permanent presence in the City, and we work hard to make sure our reports don’t simply gather dust on the shelf. We follow up persuasively to ensure that City management commits to implementing our recommendations, and that effectiveness and efficiency doesn’t get lost in the shuffle of competing demands. For status reports on outstanding audit recommendations, see our web page for the March update report, and check out our upcoming June report to Council. Finally, we look for opportunities to help City departments work together, and with other community stakeholders, to solve our problems. We support efforts to get staff out of the silos and into the streets. We poll City employees and talk to managers in other cities and counties about what does and doesn’t work for them. We also educate the community about the costs, achievements, and challenges of local government. Next year, we hope to shed light on how public safety needs are addressed by the combined efforts of the City’s Fire, Police, and Health and Human Services departments. Public safety preparedness, prevention, and response involve other departments, other jurisdictions, and state and federal requirements and funding (or lack thereof). City fire and housing inspectors, mental and public health providers, sworn staff, and community outreach staff are all an integral part of Berkeley’s overall safety strategies. In the meantime, it’s time for us to finalize our audit plan for Fiscal Year 2008. Please contact me by email, by phone, or by letter to let me know what kinds of questions you’d like answers to, and what kinds of priorities you see for our independent evaluation of City services and programs next year. (510) 981-6750
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