Posted on: Wednesday, May 28, 2003

City financial reporting criticized

By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer

The city should improve its accounting of valuable infrastructure and ensure that a computerized geographic information system is updated with accurate data on a timely basis, according to an annual financial audit released yesterday.

Officials also should make sure that future city Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports are completed on time and are reviewed properly to eliminate errors, according to the audit by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Delays and mistakes inflated the cost of this year's annual report and audit by as much as $152,000, according to billing invoices the firm filed with the city.

City Council chairman Gary Okino said that pointing out the problems should help officials correct them, and that he was confident the city is making progress.

"I think this year was in a way bad, but in a way good," he said. "I think it helped the city resolve how they're going to handle future audits."

In a written response attached to the audit, city budget director Ivan Lui-Kwan said it had taken nearly eight years to record sewer system assets into the geographical information system, but an update was now complete.

Regarding the delayed financial statements, the city's written response said "city personnel have been working diligently to address problems encountered during the audit," and that new procedures are being established.

The audit found the accounting problems and delays to be "reportable conditions" that could affect the city's ability to justify its financial statements.

The difficulty in accounting for sewer assets was described as a "material weakness" that might lead to errors that could go undetected.