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Staff compiles inventory of 78 mandated reports to council, recommends verification with agencies
Summary
Council staff presented a first‑pass inventory of 78 statutorily and administratively mandated reports that should be delivered to council, and recommended verifying submissions and their utility with agency partners to improve oversight and reduce wasted staff time.
Council staff told the Government Operations Committee they compiled an initial list of 78 reports that are required to be shared with council, including annual reports from boards and commissions, agency strategic action plans and recurring financial and program reports.
Will Perkins, policy manager for the council, said the list was developed by reviewing city code and meeting materials and that more than half of the required reports originate with boards and commissions. Most are annual; a small number are quarterly or monthly. Perkins said the team’s next steps are to verify the list with agencies and clerks, confirm whether the reports are actually being filed, measure how much staff time is required to prepare each report, and determine whether frequency, format or statutory requirements should be revised to ensure the reports are read and useful.
Perkins and colleagues framed the work as an exercise to strengthen oversight: if reports take significant staff time but are not used, the council may consider changing statutory requirements or consolidating/reporting formats. Members suggested including budget request information where relevant and working with administrative staff on what would make reports more useful. Perkins said staff will return with a refined list after agency verification and proposed refinements.
Why it matters A single inventory helps the council schedule oversight, track compliance with reporting requirements and decide whether to change frequency or format to reduce burdens on agencies and increase transparency for the public.
Next steps Staff will verify the inventory with agencies and clerks, collect data on preparation time and fidelity to mandated content, and return with a refined version and recommendations.
