County governance audit finds no deficiencies but urges centralized board inventory and onboarding; internal audit outlines ongoing projects

Nathan Wallace and Shelby Davis of Knox County Internal Audit presented the governance audit to the Audit Committee and said their testing did not identify audit findings but produced three opportunities for improvement.

"We found generally effective oversight structures, but it was very difficult to ascertain the full number of active boards and committees," Nathan Wallace said. The audit team compiled an initial inventory of 123 boards and committees, removed dissolved or out‑of‑scope entities, and judgmentally sampled 27 boards for detailed testing. Auditors recommended creating a centralized, authoritative repository so boards are not overlooked during leadership transitions.

The report also urged more consistent governance practices across boards and better onboarding for new members, noting survey responses that some board members lack clarity about bylaws, nomination and amendment procedures. "Our suggested improvement is to establish a formal process to maintain a centralized repository," auditors said, and recommended standard onboarding training for new members.

Auditors flagged two sampled entities for limited assurance because they withheld requested documentation: Young Williams Animal Center and the Knox County Employees Credit Union. One entity, the Board of Equalization, declined participation and received no assurance. "We could not provide reasonable assurance for three entities included in our sample," Wallace said.

Zach Bullerton, Internal Audit Director, then briefed the committee on department operations and upcoming work. He reviewed ongoing projects including the procurement‑card audit for internal school funds (draft stage), a control‑risk evaluation at 3 Ridges Golf Course, and planned FY27 work such as a clerk‑and‑master data migration review and a merit‑board performance audit. Bullerton also reported that the office submitted a FY27 budget request primarily to support additional staff training and certification needs.

Bullerton addressed the office’s peer review schedule: an earlier peer review was performed during a COVID‑era grace period, so the office is late for a three‑year peer review and expects a note in the next peer‑review letter. He described hotline and continuous‑audit activity—three complaints closed since October, one new complaint this week—and said the office logs and either investigates or transfers complaints to partner agencies with redactions when required.

Both the governance recommendations and the internal audit project updates were accepted for committee follow‑up; staff agreed to circulate the governance report and the compiled inventory to appropriate commission leadership and to work on a plan for repository maintenance.