Auditors briefed the Garland City Council Monday on three committee items: a parking‑enforcement audit, a procurement‑card (p‑card) audit and a follow‑up on contract‑procurement recommendations.

Parking enforcement: results and recommended fixes
Jed Johnson, director of internal audit, told the committee the city marshal’s office has issued about 51,500 parking citations since the program began in 2020 with a face value of about $2.1 million and collections near $1.0 million to date.

“The city marshal’s office issued approximately 51,500 citations… valued at $2,100,000. And during the same time, they have collected almost half of that, close to a $1,000,000,” Johnson said. He said the audit found that roughly $1.1 million remained delinquent and that about 1,100 accounts could meet the ordinance thresholds for immobilization or impoundment if delinquency‑letter requirements and other procedures are completed.

Johnson noted operational and system issues: technical glitches that had delayed late‑fee assessments on about 35 citations were corrected; some municipal‑court payments were not pushed back into the marshal’s citation system in every case; and auction proceeds for impounded vehicles were not being applied against outstanding citations. Audit staff recommended that the marshal’s office and the municipal court coordinate system reconciliation, ensure automated delinquency notices are issued promptly, and work with the city attorney and council on delinquency‑enforcement policy where immobilization or impoundment may be appropriate.

Procurement‑card program: controls and Workday
The internal audit team also summarized a broad review of the city’s use of procurement cards. The audit covered October 2021–April 2024 and found about 97,000 card transactions totaling roughly $26 million. Johnson said nearly half of city employees have custody of a p‑card and that many cards were unused or used infrequently; about 215 cards were not used during the audit period and 376 cards were used fewer than 10 times across the 31‑month scope.

Audit findings included inconsistent card‑limit settings, delayed termination of cards after employee departures, occasional duplicate payments and uneven departmental policy implementation. City staff told the committee they are already using the upcoming Workday Financials implementation to strengthen controls, centralize procurement methods and reduce card reliance for routine purchases.

Contract‑procurement follow‑up
The audit committee also received a status update on recommendations from a 2023 contract‑procurement audit. Staff reported that Workday will integrate bid and financial data to allow better tracking of procurement methods and that the procurement office has increased outreach to local vendors, promoted hub registration and hosted vendor‑education seminars. Procurement staff said they are reevaluating cooperative purchasing protocols and remain engaged in improving vendor registration and transparency.

What happens next
Audit staff and department leads said they will implement reconciliations, adjust administrative access to systems, enforce timely card cancellations, and return to the audit committee with status updates (the marshal’s office agreed to report back by June 2025). Councilors asked for emphasis on proactive enforcement and clarity on public‑facing payment locations; staff said they would move to consolidate payment locations and continue coordination.

Ending note
Committee members praised the audit work and the departments’ cooperation, and city staff said Workday adoption and policy updates are expected to address many of the issues raised in the audits.