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Forensic audit finds only minor issues in McAlester review; council and staff dispute broader claims
Summary
A forensic audit covering July 1, 2018–Dec. 31, 2020 found several minor issues — six open-record requests outside a 30-day benchmark, one instance of regular business conducted during an emergency meeting, and incomplete procedures for a small neighborhood program — but no major financial discrepancies, city officials said.
City leaders presented a forensic audit at the June 24 council meeting and described the auditor’s key findings as limited and minor.
City staff said the audit covered the period July 1, 2018, through Dec. 31, 2020. The auditor found six instances in which open-records requests were not fulfilled within a 30-day benchmark the auditor used because statute does not define "reasonable" timing. The audit also flagged a single emergency meeting during the COVID period in which councilors conducted regular business instead of limiting the agenda to emergency matters.
The audit examined a program called "Share With a Neighbor" that originated in February 2010 and found the city still holds the program funds in an account; the auditors noted the city had not adopted rules or procedures to spend the funds and that no transfers had occurred. City staff told the council the balance is a small amount — they estimated it is less than $1,000 — and that funds remain available if the council decides on a use.
City officials said the auditors found no other significant problems. The mayor and other elected leaders emphasized that standard financial audits and the city’s award-winning accounting office have confirmed the city’s financial records and that the forensic review did not uncover evidence of missing or misappropriated funds.
City staff also told the council they have spent approximately $28,000–$30,000 on the forensic audit to date and that the audit request originated from a citizen petition and related complaints that rose during the COVID period. Staff said the audit’s timing was delayed because the auditor's office was handling a large statewide caseload and several large school-district audits during the same period; the city said it repeatedly requested release dates and that the auditors completed the fieldwork in 2023 and early 2024 but the state review and sign-off took additional time.
Councilors and staff urged residents to read the audit document and noted the report characterizes the issues as minor. "If you read this document and you read what's in it, we didn't do anything wrong," the mayor said during the meeting. City staff offered to invite the auditors to a future meeting to present the report in person if the council requests it, but noted that would carry additional cost.
