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Former city auditor and residents press council on audit plan timing and independence
Summary
A former Austin city auditor and other speakers criticized delays in the city auditor’s annual audit plan and raised concerns about the office’s organizational independence; the city manager replied that the auditor reports directly to the mayor and council and that 'leadership' in the agenda memo likely referred to council.
At the public‑comment portion of the May 1 meeting, former city auditor Steven Klepper urged council to scrutinize a sentence in the auditor’s agenda memo that reported the 2025 annual audit plan had been postponed “by leadership.” Klepper said the memo’s language raised questions about which officials delayed the audit and whether the auditor’s organizational independence is being supported by city administration.
Klepper said the city code requires the auditor to present the annual audit plan through the audit committee within 30 days each year and said the item was more than 120 days late. He described a history of turnover in the auditor’s office and said organizational independence includes protections against retribution for audit staff.
City Manager Peter Zanoni responded directly to Klepper’s remarks, saying neither the city manager’s office nor deputy or assistant city managers had withheld the audit memo and that those executive‑branch officials do not control audit agenda placement. Zanoni said, based on his view, the memo’s reference to “leadership” likely referred to the mayor and council.
Council did not take any formal action on the audit plan during the public comments period, and staff later proceeded through the consent and individual agenda process. The exchange focused on transparency, statutory timing requirements, and the auditor’s ability to operate without interference; no statutory citations beyond an unidentified “city code Chapter 12½” were introduced by the speaker or staff during the public comment exchange.
Klepper identified George Holland as the current city auditor and said the office has had a “torturous path” of turnover; Zanoni said he and the manager’s office respect the auditor’s independence and do not manage the auditor’s agenda items on the council docket.
The comments drew short supportive responses from other council members and were recorded in the public transcript. The council did not immediately amend the agenda or schedule a separate discussion to review audit office procedures during that meeting.
