OCA Audit Reports

Issued: May 2009

This assistance project was approved by the City of Austin Council Audit and Finance Committee (AFC) as part of the Office of the City Auditor’s FY 2009 Service Plan. On November 18, 2008, the AFC approved a three-year list of the City’s Boards and Commissions (Boards) required to conduct an annual review in accordance with City Code §§ 2-1-8 and 2-1-46. Accordingly, the Office of the City Auditor (OCA) conducted this project to analyze the submissions and conduct a risk assessment of the first one-third of the selected City Boards to identify Boards than could benefit from a performance audit.

The rules governing City Boards are in City Code Chapter 2-1. While a few Boards were created pursuant to statute or charter, most were created by ordinance and act in an advisory role to the City Council. Board members are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of Council members. The City Manager designates staff support including liaisons for the Boards while the Office of the City Clerk provides assistance related to the ordinance requirements.

The objectives for this assistance project were to assess risk related to selected City Boards in order to:

• Identify Boards that indicate a need to be audited by the Office of the City Auditor (OCA) and
• Identify general stakeholder concerns and issues related to the Boards ordinance.

Based on the results of our risk assessment, we suggest that the Audit and Finance Committee consider approving up to three Boards for audit in FY 2010. For a list of Boards that could benefit from a performance audit, see Exhibit 2 in the audit report.

A survey of stakeholders indicates an inadequate communication structure among Board members, staff, and Council members as the most consistent problem and barrier to effective outcomes. A survey sumbitted to each Board’s chair, executive liaison, and staff liaison point to:

• difficulty communicating with Council,
• poor relations and tension between Board members and staff,
• difficulty understanding the Boards process and following procedures,
• the perception that compliance with portions of the Board ordinance have been inconsistently enforced, and
• several related membership issues as a challenge to effective service.

Download the entire text of our Boards and Commissions Risk Assessment: Year 1 in Adobe Acrobat. You will need Adobe's Acrobat Reader to view these files. Or request a hard copy of this audit report, No. AU09105, by submitting this audit report request form.

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