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Washoe County acknowledges internal audit of Alternative Sentencing program; board vows follow-up
Summary
The Board of County Commissioners acknowledged receipt of an internal-audit review into the Department of Alternative Sentencing after commissioners raised concerns about long-running operational and oversight problems. Internal audit staff said the review prompted recommendations and that follow-up will be high priority.
The board acknowledged the completed internal-audit review of the Department of Alternative Sentencing during the July 15 meeting after Commissioner Mike Clark requested the item be pulled from consent for discussion.
Commissioner Clark said he27d raised concerns previously about alleged outside employment and management oversight and asked why the issues had persisted. He told staff he was "concerned that it went on so long" and described the matter as an embarrassment for county government if federal investigators were required to intervene.
Internal audit manager Caitlin Kladosi explained the office placed the review on the approved audit schedule; staff expanded the work into an internal-control assessment and produced a report with management responses and an implementation plan. Kladosi said internal audit will perform high-priority follow-up approximately one year after the report to confirm implementation of recommendations.
County Manager Kate Thomas said executive staff take the findings seriously and are developing organization-wide process and structural changes to strengthen oversight across departments. Thomas said the county will consider management reassignments and other structural steps to reduce single-point failures and improve monitoring.
Board action
A motion to "acknowledge the receipt of the completed review for the Department of Alternative Sentencing" passed unanimously. Vice Chair Jean Herman seconded the motion; the record shows follow-up actions and an internal-audit follow-up plan will be tracked.
Ending
Commissioners and county managers said they value an on-staff internal audit function and committed to acting on the report27s recommendations; internal audit said it will return for targeted follow-up within the year to confirm corrective steps.
