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FOAC accepts code-enforcement audit, staff vows SOP consolidation and staffing fixes
Summary
The Financial Oversight and Audit Committee accepted an audit finding that while the code-enforcement division meets its 30-day case-closure KPI (93.8% vs. an 80% target), interim inspection and follow-up timeframes were inconsistently met; staff outlined SOP consolidation and recruitment plans to close gaps.
The City of El Paso Financial Oversight and Audit Committee on May 24 accepted an internal audit of the Code Enforcement Division that found the department meets its KPI of resolving most nuisance cases within 30 days but lacks consistent interim inspection timelines and a consolidated procedures manual.
Adrian Serrano, the city's chief internal auditor, introduced the audit and noted the review focused on the top five nuisance categories: brush, illegal dumping, junk vehicles, illegal parking and sidewalk obstructions. The audit covers activity through Dec. 31, 2025 and found the division resolves 93.8% of cases within 30 days, above its 80% target, but that required initial inspections and first/second follow-ups were not always completed within the five- and seven-to-ten-day benchmarks established in city procedures.
"We identified a few areas for improvement, including inconsistent interim milestone performance and multiple manuals with outdated letterhead and missing effective dates," the auditor reported, recommending a single, department-wide standard operating procedures manual that documents responses for illegal parking and sidewalk obstruction violations.
Steve Alvarado, representing code enforcement, acknowledged the department’s transition from the El Paso Police Department to a standalone unit on Sept. 1, 2025 and said staff are consolidating eight legacy manuals into a unified SOP. "We'll get that done — we're close to finalizing it, we'll send it to legal and we believe we'll beat the target date of August 31," Alvarado said, adding staffing vacancies contributed to some delays and that recent promotions and a quality-assurance and training specialist hire will improve timelines.
Council members pressed staff to clarify what "case closed" means in practice. Alvarado said the division typically posts notice and allows seven days for compliance, mails notices to owners of record when necessary, and transfers unresolved cases to the city's Environmental Services Department (ESD) for abatement; the code-enforcement file remains open until the receiving department closes it. He said transfers to ESD typically occur within 21–28 days and that updates to the case-management platform and automated alerts should help reduce missed follow-ups.
The committee moved and approved the audit item by voice vote.
The audit’s corrective steps include completing a consolidated SOP with up-to-date letterhead and effective dates, documenting procedures for parking and sidewalk violations, and evaluating workload and automated-notification tools to ensure interim inspection milestones are consistently met. Implementation progress and staffing updates are expected at future FOAC meetings.
