Commission narrows parks audit scope to avoid repetitive utility testing

The finance committee amended the scope of the Parks & Recreation audit to reduce time‑consuming, low‑risk testing of utility transactions and to require analytical summaries by location instead.

Jack Reagan of UHY Advisors updated the committee on audit progress and described the initial approach: reviewing more than 14,000 transactions spanning 2021–2023, including utility charges, event receipts and travel/entertainment lines. Reagan said an in‑depth 2021 review of utility transactions found no systemic issues and recommended a risk‑based approach for 2022–23: an analytical table showing utility expenses by location and year with variance flags that would trigger targeted transaction testing if anomalies appeared.

Commissioners — including Mayor Pro Tem Wayne Guilfoyle and others — pressed for efficiency and for the audit team to focus on higher‑risk non‑utility items (credit cards, deposits, travel, event receipts). The commission voted unanimously to amend the engagement: UHY will provide analytical tables that compare 2021, 2022 and 2023 utility expenses by location and drill down only where red flags occur. UHY reported the engagement remains on track to finish in 45 days, assuming targeted scope adjustments.

What comes next: UHY will produce the requested analytical tables and continue the audit focusing resources on higher‑risk transactions; the commission will receive the revised findings in future committee proceedings.