The number of complaints of fraud, misuse of resources and abuse by city employees continues to increase each year, according to Brian Molloy, chief of investigations for the Austin City Auditor’s Office. Molloy told the Council Audit and Finance Committee Wednesday that auditors received 404 complaints during fiscal year 2025, compared to 380 complaints in […]
Austin City Council Audit and Finance Committee
A sub-group of the Austin City Council whose members are charged with oversight of city fiscal operations and anything that falls under the purview of the Office of the City Auditor. Reports and documents for the committee can be found here.
Posted inDevelopment
Fed rate cut could help city jump start stalled redevelopment projects
City staff expressed optimism on Wednesday that improvements in capital markets could create positive momentum for stalled redevelopment projects on a variety of city parcels. At a briefing to City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee, staff from the Financial Services Department cited the The Federal Reserve System’s recent interest rate cut as a sign that […]
Posted inCity Hall
Austin Resource Recovery not meeting Zero Waste goals, audit says
In 2009, Austin became the first city in Texas to adopt a Zero Waste Strategic Plan. The plan set a goal of diverting 90 percent of waste away from landfills and incinerators by 2040. But Austin is not on track to meet that goal, according to an audit conducted by the Office of the City […]
Posted inBudget
As state considers further constriction, Council wrestles with how high to go on tax rate election
Ahead of Thursday’s comprehensive budget discussion, there is almost no question that a tax rate election to fund essential city services will be on the ballot come November. At least nine City Council members have expressed support for some level of one, and Council’s Audit and Finance Committee voted unanimously to hold a tax rate […]
Posted inPolice
Audit flags oversight gaps in APD license plate reader pilot
A recent audit of the Austin Police Department’s License Plate Reader (LPR) program found that while the department largely complied with policies during the yearlong pilot, internal audit procedures and vendor contracts left room for improvement and potential privacy risks. The findings were presented to the City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee this week, as […]
Posted inCity Hall
Audit cites city failures to address discrimination, harassment
The city has made some progress in handling discrimination, harassment and retaliation complaints by city employees, but some investigations still fail to follow basic rules for conducting such inquiries, according to an audit conducted by the City Auditor’s Office. Members of the City Council Audit & Finance Committee heard about the audit, which followed up […]
Posted inAustin
Homelessness strategy plan calls for $101M in spending from city, partner groups
Austin’s Homeless Strategy Office is proposing a funding package totaling just under $101 million for homelessness response efforts in the city’s next budget, with about one-third allocated toward maintaining existing programs, one-third for new city investments, and one-third for initiatives expected to be funded by partner organizations. The spending plan laid out in a presentation […]
Posted inPolice
Council Audit and Finance Committee hears updates on APD recruiting and hiring practices
On Wednesday, City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee heard a briefing on the Austin Police Department’s recruiting and hiring efforts. City leaders have been raising concerns about APD response times and staffing of sworn and non-sworn public safety employees for several years. The presentation this week focused on the findings of an audit on recruitment […]
Posted inPolice
APD gets temporary extension of license plate reader program
The Austin Police Department’s use of automated license plate readers as an investigative tool will continue through June, City Council decided last week. Later this year, Council will determine whether to make the pilot program a permanent feature, depending on the findings of the city auditor’s analysis to be presented to the Audit and Finance […]
Posted inCity Hall
Tax rate election looks likely for Austin this year
Under state law, Austin is only allowed to raise its tax rate by 3.5 percent without asking voters for permission. That law has been on the books since 2019 without the city scheduling a regular tax rate election. But it looks like this is the year. As a reader pointed out, Austin did have a […]
Posted inWater
Audit finds Austin Water needs to document how it fixes leaks
While Austin Water has worked to limit the amount of water lost through breaks in its water lines, over time the amount of water lost through such leaks has steadily increased, according to an audit discussed at the City Council Audit & Finance Committee on Wednesday. As the audit team observed, the utility has taken […]
Posted inCity Hall
Audit and Finance seeks more input before voting on board and commission changes
The City Council Audit and Finance Committee on Wednesday deliberated scaling back about two dozen of the city’s boards, commissions and other governmental bodies but ultimately took no action pending further input from the affected groups. The discussion centered on a City Council-approved resolution to consolidate or dissolve up to 36 citizen groups, although Council […]