Board accepts RGS audit of Auditor‑Controller operations; staff to publish procedures, seek legal memo

The Mendocino County Board of Supervisors on Feb. 25 accepted an informational presentation from Regional Government Services (RGS) summarizing findings and recommendations from a review of the Auditor‑Controller’s fiscal operations and audit closeout work.

RGS consultant Robert (Roberto) Moreno told the board the work identified four principal areas of concern: limited governmental‑accounting expertise following staff turnover; a lack of documented operating procedures; under‑utilization of the county’s Tyler Munis ERP system; and a set of specific accounting transactions and recording practices that required correction. "There was a lack of documented operating procedures," Moreno said during the presentation, and "the system was not being utilized to its full potential." The report described 20 findings overall; eight related to accounting transactions, and RGS recommended both staff training and system configuration changes.

Acting Auditor‑Controller‑Treasurer‑Tax Collector Sarah Pierce told the board the office has already addressed a number of the recommendations. "Several staff members have successfully completed the mentioned trainings," Pierce said, noting the office has implemented five of eight auditor adjusting journal entries and is working on the remainder. Pierce added that the fund balance at June 30, 2024, "is accurate and does match our annual comprehensive financial report, which was audited by our external auditor CLA."

RGS and county staff urged a multi‑year, countywide approach to fully exploit the Munis system. Roberto Moreno said Munis includes dashboard and hub functionality that could reduce manual reporting and ad‑hoc Excel work once properly configured and trained to users.

Board direction and action: The board approved a motion accepting the RGS presentation and directed staff to publish existing procedures, make newly drafted procedures publicly available as they are completed, and to request a legal analysis (Supervisor Norvell’s request) regarding procedural and oversight questions. The motion, as amended on the floor, carried unanimously. The board also authorized staff to continue working with outside consultants (ClientFirst and RGS) and with the county’s IT division on system configuration and reconciliations.

What staff will do: Pierce said the office has identified roughly 30 procedures that need creation or update; five had been completed by January and five more were nearing completion. The office will implement training for affected departments and provide annual refreshers. For system improvements, the county is working with consultants to reconfigure workflows for journal entries, fixed assets and bank reconciliations—a multi‑year effort dependent on budget and staff resources.

Ending: Supervisors commended staff and RGS for the collaborative work to bring the county’s books and audit closeout into alignment. The board’s acceptance includes direction to publish preexisting procedural documents and newly drafted manuals so the public can see the “before and after” of reforms.