Clark County Proposed Charter Amendment No. 27

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Statement For · Liz Cline

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Committee: Peter Silliman, Chair

A vote for performance audits is a vote for responsible, transparent, and efficient use of taxpayer funds. This amendment would give the county council, the representatives of the people, the power to conduct audits of county departments or programs as part of their legislative duties. Performance auditing has been shown to improve the efficient use of funds in government operations. The county auditor already conducts routine audits of county finances. This amendment does not duplicate or replace those efforts. This amendment specifically addresses auditing department operations or programs. It grants the power to conduct independent audits to the body that approves the budget for those departments and operations, the county council. Auditing departments or programs for effectiveness should be one of the considerations for continuing a program or operation. Other Washington charter counties have given this power to their representatives and believe auditing is a way to maximize cost savings, improve program effectiveness and efficiency, and maintain best practices. This amendment gives the council the discretion to define the scope of the audit and determine if a county employee, the auditor’s department, or an outside contractor will conduct it. This flexibility will maximize the efficient use of the audit process. Direct access to information produces better policy and the council is responsible for policy and the budget. Give the council this tool to do it better. Vote Yes on Proposition 27 performance audits. For more info, visit www.clarkcharterreview.com

Rebuttal of argument against

The Council currently can only request an audit. The auditor isn’t required to conduct it. Charter Amendment 27 does not duplicate any existing financial audits or require any audit be performed. There is therefore no expense added by this amendment. It gives the Council discretionary power to audit a department or program when needed and to choose the most cost-effective approach to do it. More efficient use of taxpayer funds will be the result.

Statement Against · Dijana Katan

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Committee: John Latta, Chair

Council Already Part of the Audit Process Please vote no on Charter Amendment 27. County Councilors can already request audits. Any Clark County resident can also ask for an audit. An Audit Oversight Committee reviews requests, and a County Councilor is always on that committee. The Council already has a voice in the audit process. State Provides Free Outside Review If a Councilor wants an outside review, the Washington State Auditor’s Office already offers one for free. County staff have used this service before. Hiring private audit firms costs taxpayers money, and those firms do not answer to voters. We should not spend extra money on something we already can get at no cost. Extra Audits Will Add Expense Our county already has strong audits. We pay the Washington State Auditor’s Office $350,000 to $400,000 each year for required audits. Amendment 27 would add new costs, not reduce them. Its Fiscal Analysis says it could cost taxpayers at least $100,000 more each year. Costs could grow even higher. For example, Pierce County spends about $600,000 a year on performance audits. Why Pay More – In Taxes Adding outside audits does not guarantee savings. Their recommendations can increase costs instead of reducing them. Our county already has a limited tax base and struggles to fund important services like public safety. We should not spend taxpayer money on reviews we already can get for free. Vote no on Charter Amendment 27.

Rebuttal of argument for

This amendment wastes taxpayer funds as Council already passed an ordinance allowing any citizen or councilor to request a performance audit from the County Auditor’s department. No evidence shows the existing law does not work. Taxpayers should not pay for outside audits when they can request one for free. Other charter counties have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on outside audits. This is not responsible, efficient use of taxpayer funds. Vote no.