Council auditor and inspector general report city fiscal outlook and audits into tuition reimbursement and P‑card use

The commission heard a fiscal and audit update from the council auditor’s office and the inspector general, who presented a quarterly summary and described ongoing audit and investigatory work.

The council auditor’s office reported that several independent agencies show mixed budget positions. The electric utility (JEA) is projecting expenses that will exceed appropriation authority because of higher fuel costs; the auditor said an amendment to increase appropriation authority by about $28,000,000 is expected and that amendment will reduce the amount of funding sent to capital projects. The Jacksonville Port Authority (JPA) was projected to end the year with a $3,600,000 surplus, and the airport authority (JAA) had a projected surplus of $37,400,000; the auditor noted the JAA projection was prepared before a recent garage fire. Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA) was projecting a $2,300,000 surplus overall but also projects exceeding appropriation authority by about $2,400,000; the auditor said that additional spending would be covered by grant dollars but that exceeding appropriation requires a city council budget amendment.

For the city general fund the…