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Hartford chief auditor outlines limited staff, 171‑item audit universe and $578,895 budget request
Summary
Chief Auditor Donna Barbieri told council the internal audit office has three auditors on staff (five positions total), a roughly $578,895 FY27 budget request and a planned audit cycle covering 171 auditable areas; she said one auditor vacancy has been open about four months and that certification requirements limit candidate pools.
Donna Barbieri, chief auditor for the City of Hartford, presented the Internal Audit Department's FY27 recommended budget and a high‑level schedule for audits and special investigations.
Barbieri said the audit "universe" contains about 171 auditable areas (58 high risk, 70 medium, 43 low) and that the department produces an annual plan of about 20 audits, meaning a full cycle of the entire universe would take multiple years. "Our annual plan is about 20 audits per year, and with that, it would take 8 years to perform all 171 audits," she said.
She described current staffing as five authorized positions with three filled auditors (Jay Johnson, Phu Lac Nguyen and Christopher Lombardo) and one open position with no administrative support. Barbieri said the department's recommended FY27 general‑fund budget is $578,895, a roughly 2% increase tied largely to negotiated payroll costs.
Barbieri also discussed follow‑up work and special investigations: the auditors track management action plans and had identified 48 issues between FY23 and FY25 with management reporting 11 resolved so far; she said the office maintains a fraud hotline but has received few calls and wants to increase citizen awareness of reporting options.
On hiring, Barbieri said finding certified candidates has been challenging because the office requires certifications (CPA or certified internal auditor) in the current job description and many prospective candidates remain in public accounting work during tax season.
Council members thanked Barbieri for a thorough presentation, asked about risk‑rating methodology and encouraged flexibility on certifications and job descriptions to broaden applicant pools; Barbieri said she would review job requirements and the audit universe as part of upcoming strategic efforts.
The committee did not vote on the audit budget during the session; Barbieri said staff will continue to update the audit plan and follow up on outstanding recommendations.
