City Clerk warns staffing gaps slow contracts and invoice payments; committee seeks memos on solutions

Interim City Clerk Patty Santos told the Budget Committee on May 6 that recent turnover and unfilled accounting vacancies have slowed the department's ability to execute contracts and pay invoices in a timely way.

The problem and scope - Staffing and workload: Santos said the clerk has 12 filled positions slated for elimination in the proposed budget but has identified other internal offsets that would allow the office to avoid layoffs. She said her office continues to struggle to process invoices promptly because of sustained staffing turnover in its accounting unit and the complexity of city payment systems. - Specific bottlenecks: The clerk identified a shortage of accounting clerks, an accountant and a management analyst who handle contracts and payment processing. She said those roles are critical for timely contract execution and invoice payment and that the department has been diverting vacant positions and temporary part‑time help to try to cover the backlog. - Payment systems interaction (InsightSafe): Committee members pressed for clarity on payments routed through the InsightSafe platform (the portal used for certain community and mayoral payments and grants). The clerk and CAO confirmed multiple paths: some invoices are paid directly by the clerk; others are processed through controller instructions and redirected to departments such as Housing or LAHSA, which then pay service providers. That split increases coordination needs and can slow payments for high‑volume items such as hotel/motel invoices used under emergency sheltering programs.

Council reaction and requests Committee members said delays in contracts and vendor payments affect small businesses and community partners. Councilmembers asked for: - A budget memo asking the clerk to spell out implementation recommendations in her letter, including the offsets she identified that avoid layoffs. The memo is intended to evaluate whether the clerk's suggested changes would materially improve contract speed and payment timeliness. - A review of InsightSafe and related payment paths to identify consolidation opportunities and reduce redundancy. Councilmembers asked the CAO and controller to participate in that analysis.

Context and constraints Santos said the clerk has prioritized avoiding layoffs where possible and is using cross‑training and temporary hires to keep services running. She urged long‑term attention to process mapping and staffing to reduce repeated year‑over‑year delays that affect vendors, especially small nonprofits and firms that rely on timely city payments.

Ending note The committee asked for budget memos and a special study to identify near‑term and structural fixes so that contract execution and invoice payments can be more predictable and efficient across the city while protecting clerk staff positions where feasible.