The Brownsville City Commission approved the amended Audit and Oversight Committee bylaws during last Tuesday’s regular meeting.
The committee was abolished on Dec. 4, 2018, and then reinstated on July 30.
Commissioners voted to approve the bylaws with the condition that the committee consist of no less than three and no more than five members.
The purpose of the committee is to “provide oversight of the entity’s governance, risk management, and internal control practices in order to ascertain the integrity of its practices therefore providing confidence and transparency through independent structured and systematic oversight,” according to the bylaws as presented to the commission before the amendment was added.
Under Section 2.01 of the bylaws, which addresses authority, “the audit committee and its designees will have unrestricted access to members of management, employees, and relevant information it considers necessary to discharge its duties.”
The committee shall meet at least once each month and members shall adhere to the city’s code of conduct, values and ethics.
In a phone interview with The Rider last Wednesday, City Attorney Rene De Coss said the members of the committee are At-Large “A” and “B” Commissioners John Cowen and Rose Gowen, and former Planning and Zoning Commission member Francisco Orozco.
De Coss, who believes the committee will be a good tool for management, said it is the result of a “very efficient process.”
“It’s relying on regular standard auditing and oversight guidance from some recognized standard industry like the, I think it’s called the Institute of Internal Auditors … which is a very reputable auditing standard and all-in-all, I think that it’s a very good thing for Brownsville,” he said.
The committee is also going to create the office of the city auditor, who will be able to audit the processes of the city and all the departments that make up the city structure, along with entities under the structure, according to the city attorney.
Asked what the biggest takeaway is from the bylaws, De Coss replied that it is going to create the office of the city auditor. He said that without an audit and oversight component, it is hard to see whether people are doing what they are supposed to be doing. It also helps with risk management and the detection and prevention of fraud.
“I think that’s always needed, you know, you always need someone to be able to look at process, to make sure that they are running at an optimal level and making sure that decisions made at the commission or by management are implemented in the departments, you know,” De Coss said. “Auditing not only does that but also looks at, you know, compliance with, you know, employment policy manuals, standard of policies to the City of Brownsville, making sure that all the departments are adhering to all those mandates from law and from the city at all times.”
In a phone interview with The Rider last Wednesday, District 4 Commissioner Ben Neece said the biggest takeaway from the item is the fact that the city auditor is completely independent of the city manager.
“This way the city auditor’s under the audit committee, which is under the city commission, so there’s a separation,” Neece said. “It’s a check and a balance against the executive branch, which is the city manager. So, that’s the big takeaway, that now it’s an independent function … independent, I mean, of the executive officer, which is the city manager.”
Asked why the public should be aware of the bylaws and the committee, Neece replied that they should be aware in order to have confidence in the way the city operates and they know that there is now a check and balance.
“There’s a way to address shortcomings on the executive branch, which can be executive branch/administration. … So, you understand that the City of Brownsville charter sets up our government very similar to the federal and the state models,” he said. “So, the Audit and Oversight Committee is a mechanism that the legislative branch, the city commission, has to check on the executive branch, which is charged with executing our policy and our budget. So, we have, now, a way to check on the executive side.”
The city attorney believes it is important for the public to be aware of the bylaws because the city is a public entity that relies on public funding for its operation.
“We get this money to provide services to the citizens and to make sure the city, and all the services it provides, is running effectively,” De Coss said. “Make sure that the processes are not wasteful, that, you know, money is well spent … because money, unfortunately, doesn’t grow on trees and we do get it through taxation and I think along with that comes the responsibility to be good stewards.”
Neece said his preference is that the committee should have been composed of only commissioners.
“What the mayor did is he diluted his authority to have a check and a balance on the executive officers by putting in a non-commissioner into the audit committee,” he said. “That’s the con, if you want to put a con, is that it should have been, in my opinion, all commissioners.”
Neece said it is good to have the committee back.
“I’m really happy now that it’s back and it’s able to do its business in its diluted form,” Neece said.
