City Council 2021 Audit Status Report

Information
We are tracking one audit report and three recommendations made to the Portland City Council.
On this page

We are tracking one audit report and three recommendations made to the Portland City Council

Our report to City Council concerned follow through on accountability promises Council made to voters when approving City-referred ballot measures. City Council implemented one of our recommendations and there are three still in process.

A bar graph showing one recommendation has been implemented and two recommendations are in process.

Highlight from Last Year

In 2021, Portland Parks & Recreation and the Portland Bureau of Transportation made progress including accountability information in ballot titles and explanatory statements provided to voters. We had recommended the materials include specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and when appropriate, time-bound commitments. The bureaus included commitments that were specific and measurable and appeared to be achievable and realistic.

To Do

Council has more work to do to implement two recommendations. One was to specify the position or body responsible for monitoring accountability commitments and include accountability functions in their duties. The other was to direct bureaus to assess and document administrative burdens and costs to implement accountability measures to ensure they are feasible. Results in 2021 were mixed here and we hope Council does more to fully implement these recommendations.

The City needs to make realistic commitments to voters and ensure they are delivered

Report published December 17, 2019 | Follow-up report | Contact Jenny Scott

Our 2019 audit found that the City was not always delivering the accountability measures it promised to voters. We directed three recommendations to City Council because it approves all measures the City places on the ballot. Since we issued our report, Council referred two funding measures to voters: Fixing our Streets Two and the Parks Operating Levy. We asked the Commissioners-in-Charge of Portland Parks and Recreation and the Portland Bureau of Transportation to report how their bureaus implemented the recommendations when preparing the new funding measures. We found the City is making progress towards implementing the recommendations.

On this audit there was one recommendation implemented and  two in process.

A bar graph showing two recommendations have been implemented.

In Process Recommendation Details

Icon of a hourglass on a blue background.

We recommended that Council direct bureaus to assess and document the administrative burdens and costs to implement planned accountability measures to ensure that they are feasible. Portland Parks and Recreation assessed and documented the administrative burdens and costs for annual reports, a public oversight committee, and independent audits for the Parks Operating Levy based on what it cost to implement the same accountability protections for the 2014 Parks Replacement Bond. Parks also estimated and documented the costs for the staff positions needed to coordinate the new levy and administer the new services it funded. Staff from the Portland Bureau of Transportation said that Council did not direct it to assess the administrative costs and burdens of the accountability measures for Fixing Our Streets Two. Staff believed this was because the Bureau had implemented similar accountability measures in the first iteration of Fixing our Streets from 2016-2019. (The City needs to make realistic commitments to voters and ensure they are delivered)

We recommended that Council specify the position or body responsible for monitoring accountability commitments, and that early verification and ongoing monitoring of the measures be included in their duties. We also recommended that public reporting include this information. Parks specified in the ballot title that an oversight committee will review levy expenditures and provide annual reports. In a recruitment for committee members, Parks added that the committee is responsible for reviewing the levy's progress, outcomes, and independent audit. Transportation specified in the ballot title and explanatory statement that a public oversight committee could oversee spending, review audits, and report annually. In a description of the oversight committee, Transportation added that the committee would monitor project implementation. (The City needs to make realistic commitments to voters and ensure they are delivered)

Implemented Recommendation Details

Icon of a white check mark on a blue background.

We recommended that Council make commitments in the ballot title and explanatory statement to voters that are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and when appropriate, time-bound. Parks included specific commitments in the explanatory statement about what services the levy would fund. The commitments were measurable and appeared to be achievable and realistic. Transportation included specific commitments in the ballot title about what improvements the tax would fund. The commitments were measurable and appeared to be achievable and realistic. The bureau omitted the percentage split between paving and safety improvements that proved difficult to implement during the first iteration of Fixing our Streets. (The City needs to make realistic commitments to voters and ensure they are delivered)


Data Notes

At the end of every audit report, we issue a series of recommendations intended to make programs work even better. This report includes the status of Bureau recommendations since 2018, which was the beginning of our new follow-up process. We prepared it with a few audiences in mind:

  • City Council can use it to identify bureaus that may need additional resources or support in order to implement recommendations.
  • Bureau directors can use it to assess bureau performance and to determine if any changes in policy or procedure are necessary.
  • Bureau management and staff can use it to track recommendation status across audits to develop work plans and priorities.
  • General public can use it to monitor the status of recommendations related to topics of interest and to compare performance across bureaus.

This report includes recommendation status as of December 31, 2021.


Translated reports
Reports from this year and most of 2021 are available in four languages: Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Russian. We are translating new reports as they’re released, but older reports may not be available in a language other than English. If you would like to request a translated version of a report, please contact Leslie Chaires.


Links