A formal
mechanism to receive and review reports of “illegal, improper,
wasteful or fraudulent” fiscal activities in Yorba Linda's
governmental operations has been approved on a 5-0 vote by the City
Council.
The new
and easy-to-use procedure will allow residents and city employees to
anonymously report concerns on a “fraud hotline,” a dedicated
phone number that will be set up to receive messages about suspicious
activity, Finance Director Scott Catlett reported to council members.
“Additionally,
an online form on the city's website that sends an email to a fraud
hotline email inbox would provide a second option for reports to be
submitted,” Catlett, who also serves as the city's treasurer,
stated.
Fraud
reporting calls and emails will go to Catlett initially, with each
reported item shared with City Manager Mark Pulone, Assistant City
Manager David Christian and the department head responsible for the
area of concern, as applicable, Catlett stated.
“Staff
would then work to verify that the reported concern is valid and then
undertake corrective action,” Catlett noted, adding that a summary
of all reports received would be provided to the city's Finance
Committee on a quarterly basis.
Two
council members, currently Peggy Huang and Beth Haney, make up the
committee.
A
staff analysis of each concern and information outlining how a
reported matter was addressed, if corrective action was needed, also
would be reported to the committee, with results forwarded to the
council for the “consent calendar,” which lists routine items for
a single vote.
The
city will inform the public of these new reporting mechanisms in the
city newsletter and on the city's website. Previously, the only
method to report fraud anonymously was by mail.
Also,
council approved designating the Finance Committee as the city's
Audit Subcommittee, with new responsibilities, including interacting
with the city's contract auditing firm, reviewing financial
statements in detail and undertaking other council-directed oversight
activities.
The
committee, which currently meets monthly to mainly review the city's
check register, listing each city payment, will now meet quarterly to
review all city financial transactions.
And
in addition to the annual audit conducted by a firm under contract
with the city, the city will pay for two special audits each year in
areas to be selected by the Finance Committee.
Finally,
in a move expected to “enhance transparency relative to the city's
financial data,” the OpenGov portal previously open only for
internal city use will be available on the city website.
Catlett
stated the system will provide “a valuable tool to review the
city's budget and spending,” so residents won't need to file public
records requests for the information.
Costs
are $9,000 yearly for OpenGov, not more than $10,000 annually for the
special audits and staff time for the fraud reporting procedures.