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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 12081998 - SD3 SW THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA Adopted this Order on December 8, 1998 by the following vote: AYES: SUPERVISORS UILK.EMA, GERBER, DESAULNIER, CANCAMILLA and ROGERS NOES: NONE ABSENT: NONE ABSTAIN: NONE SUBJECT: DEPARTMENTAL PERFORMANCE REPORT OF THE OFFICE OF THE AUDITOR- CONTROLLER IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that the 1998 departmental performance report of the Office of the Auditor-Controller is ACCEPTED. I hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. ATTESTED: w� Phil Batchelor,Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and County Administrator BY ,Deputy CC: CAO Auditor-Controller OFFICE OF THE AUDITOR-CONTROLLER 1998 PERFORMANCE REPORT AUDITOR-CONTROLLER Kenneth Corcoran ASSISTANT AUDITOR-CONTROLLER Stephen Ybarra SD.3 12-8-98 SECTION I DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW Department Responsibilities: The functions and duties of the Auditor-Controller Office primarily are defined by law. It is the Auditor-Controller's responsibility to serve as the chief accounting officer for the County and to ensure that the functions established for the Auditor-Controller in the California Constitution, various California codes and by the Board of Supervisors are effectively performed. Additionally, the Auditor-Controller Office has assumed other duties that are not statutorily required. The Auditor-Controller serves as one of the key players on the County's Financial Team and has greatly contributed to the Financial Team's efforts. The responsibilities of the Auditor-Controller Office include the following: maintain the County's accounting records; prepare financial reports and audits for departments and special districts governed by the Board of Supervisors; authorize and account for all deposits and withdrawals from the County Treasury; monitor the County budget; perform property tax calculations and allocations; and control fixed assets. The Auditor-Controller Office has 5 divisions: 1. Property Tax/Cost Accounting 2. Payroll & Budgets/Special Districts 3. General Accounting/Accounts Payable 4. Internal Audit 5. Accounting Systems (See Attachment A-Organizational Chart) The programs currently carried out by staff in the Auditor-Controller Office can be broken down into four categories. These categories are as follows: SM I2-8-98 STATUTORY RESPONSIBILITIES IN SUPPORT OF COUNTY OPERATIONS This category includes the core financial services providedto all County departments that are basic to the functioning of the County. Some of the core activities included in this category are paying the County's employees, paying the County's vendors and service providers, maintaining the County's financial records, auditing the County's records, etc. Various California Codes statutorily mandate the Auditor's role in these activities. AUDITOR'S STATUTORY RESPONSIBILITIES IN SUPPORT OF ALL COUNTY JURISDICTIONS This category basically includes the services provided by the Property Tax unit in allocating and accounting for property taxes and assessments. The Auditor's mandated responsibilities in the tax area are clearly defined in the Revenue and Taxation Code. The largest single source of discretionary County revenues is dependent upon the functioning of the Tax unit. COUNTY'S STATUTORY RESPONSIBIL.ITES HANDLED BY THE AU'D'ITOR The Auditor-Controller Office has assumed responsibility for certain activities, which although are absolutely necessary, do not statutorily need to be done in the Auditor's Office. Prime examples are the Welfare Accounting unit and accounting support provided to the Child Support Receipts Processing unit in the District Attorney's Office. AUDITOR'S NON-STATUTORY RESPONSIBILITIES The final category includes activities the Auditor-Controller Office has become involved with over the years that provide positive benefits to the County but are not legally mandated of the Auditor. Examples include production of the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR), and the Auditor's involvement with the Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes (TRANS) program. z SD.3 12-8-98 ali cations for Auditor-Controller Government Code Section 26945 No person shall hereafter be elected or appointed to the office of county auditor of any county unless the person meets at least one of the following criteria: + The person possesses a valid certificate issued by the California State Board of Accountancy under * * * Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 5000) of Division 3 of the Business and Professions Code showing the person to be, and a permit authorizing the person to practice as, a certifiedpublic accountant or as a public accountant. * The person possesses a baccalaureate degree from an accredited university, college, or other four-year institution, with a major in accounting or its equivalent, as described in subdivision (a) of Section 5081.1 of the Business and Professions Code. ♦ The person possesses a certificate issued by the Institute of Internal Auditors showing the person to be a designated professional internal auditor, with a minimum of 15 college semester units, or their equivalent, in accounting, auditing, or finance. ♦ The person has served as county auditor, chief deputy county auditor, or chief assistant county auditor for a continuous period of not less than three years. D"10 of Mice: Government Code Section 26881 "The County auditor, or in counties that have the office of controller, the auditor-controller shall be the chief accounting officer of the county." SD,3 12-8-98 SECTION 11 RESOURCE Financial & Personnel Resources: The Auditor-Controller Office has a total of 74 allocated positions. The budget for fiscal year 1998-99 is appropriated at a net county cost of $2,168,478. The following shows the budget history and percentage ratio of net county cost to net expenditures over the past six fiscal years. �u+n BUDGE HMTM FYIMM FY1034% FYI&W s M$" FYI MMM &WO fel t ►1 tom# fel manly ant V^817 $1,93Z630 UX4308 $1,925,06D $1,%7,017 $1,W,017 TdW Not Rjolvitums *%354279 A29M $4„619 19 $4,514337 A51%9W $4, 3;639 FdMkmPdmWWt powdorm 79 rr n 77 77 76 Rabod N0C&Nat F.,a"rx'fiftm(NOC W Bsrd) Ac�tttai Et w z t *L+'S4t S {�7L1tJ74 z • t v�G"Fts934)F 905 �P 97-M Fmd Yew 4 SD-3 12-8-98 (See Attachment 8 for Specific Information on Funding 'Sources and Staff Allocation by Program) Affirmative Action: It is the Auditor-Controller Office's primary objective to ensure equal employment opportunity for all employees to achieve their highest level of productivity and professional growth. The Auditor-Controller Office has established and will continue to provide an environment where equal opportunity exists for all people in all aspects of employer/employee relations without discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation or disability. The Auditor-Controller Office ensures each employee acts in a manner that ensures a working environment where all employees are treated with dignity and respect. Comparison of department statistics to the 1990 labor force goals: Group 1999 Labor Department Force Goals Statistics Females 45.4% 72.88% African Americans 7.6% 1.69% American .6% 0% Indian/Alaskan Natives HIV Mics 10.6% 1 10.16°l0 The Auditor-Controller Office continues to target underrepresented classes when recruiting for job openings. The Office also ensures that promotional opportunities are available to all administrative and paraprofessional staff who desire to achieve professional status through course work, training and job experience. s SD.3 I2-8-98 in cross-training staff to enhance skills, provide new challenges and opportunities and cultivate a team environment. The Office also encourages employees to pursue the necessary course- work requirements to promote into higher-level classifications. The classification series in the Auditor-Controller Office is set up to allow account clerk staff to enter into paraprofessional and professional accounting classifications. The Office has shown its support of professional development by ensuring all employees are aware of the training reimbursement policy and allowing some flexibility in work hours. Employees who become Certified Public Accountants and Certified Internal Auditors receive a 5% monthly differential. The Office also supports the professional development of staff by obtaining annual memberships to professional accounting associations, such as the American Payroll Association, National Association of Local Government Auditors, Association of Government Accountants, Information Systems Audit and Control Association, etc. The Department also subscribes to the Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB) to receive the updated accounting pronouncements and receives the Constitution and California updated codes. Employees also have access to numerous other accounting, auditing, and system publications. Staff members are encouraged to attend seminars and meetings and to participate on a variety of professional accountinglauditing committees. For example, many of the Internal Auditors serve in leadership rales within the local and national Association of County Auditors. One of the Principal Accountants, Paul Abelson, serves on several subcommittees of the California State Auditors' Association including the Legislative subcommittee and is actively involved as a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants {AICPA} and other professional accountant organizations. Presently, Pal is the leader of the AICPA's "Competency Model Development Project." 7 .................................................1.11,11, .............................................. ...................................... ............... SD.3 12-8-98 Sick Leave: The policy of the Auditor-Controller Office is governed by Administrative Bulletin 411.6 and Local 2700's Memorandum of Understanding. All employees are aware of the guidelines set forth in these documents, and each manager and supervisor is responsible for ensuring compliance with his/her division and addressing misuse accordingly. The departmental sick leave percentage usage for calendar year 1998, January I through June 30, is 60%, which represents an overall decrease in sick leave usage by over 15% from 1997. Staff Development: Evaluations The Auditor-Controller Office recognizes the importance of conducting annual-performance evaluations of employees. The Administrative staff supports the County Administrator Office's and Board of Supervisor's philosophy that formal, written-performance evaluations provide an excellent opportunity to review an employee's performance and to establish future goals and objectives for the upcoming year. All represented and management employees receive annual-performance evaluations even after reaching the top step of their classification. All new employees and transfers also receive a written evaluation after three months of employment and their probationary period, which usually is six months. Professional Development The Auditor-Controller Office expects managers and supervisors to support the development of their staff and to assist them in obtaining their highest level of productivity and professional growth. Ongoing communication and interaction are provided by all managers and supervisors. Each manager conducts monthly division meetings and when necessary problem-solving work sessions. .............. SD.3 12-8-98 AUTOMATION: As mentioned, the Office is continually automating its processes. The implementation of a Local Area Network and Wide Area Network two years ago allows employees easier accessibility to information as well as the technical resources necessary to effectively perform their jobs. This year our primary accomplishment was implementation of the new Human/Resources Payroll and Timekeeping Systems for over 6,000 employees. Additionally, this year staff from our Office and Information Technology made great strides to ensure that our mission-critical systems are Year 2000 compliant. Our Office also worked closely with staff from the County Administrator's Office and began implementation to upgrade the County's Budget system. In addition to devoting attention and resources to large county wide systems, our Office continues to explore technology and its usefulness internally. This year further work was completed in automating our operations, particularly in the area our General Accounting/Accounts Payable division and providing training to staff. Several of our System division staff were sent to various computer application classes, such as Crystal Deporting and Windows NT Administration to enhance their skills and provide technical support to the rest of the staff. SECTION III CUSTOMER SERVICES Customer Profile: The Auditor-Controller serves all the citizens of Contra Costa County by ensuring the fiscal integrity of the overall financial operations of the County. As an elected official, the Auditor-Controller's first consideration is to serve his countywide constituents by carrying out the multitude of statutory requirements that are imposed on the Auditor-Controller. In carrying out these statutory requirements, County departments, employees as well as other jurisdictions, such as the school districts, special districts and cities SD.3 12-8-98 are served. The Auditor-Controller Office also provides services to the Contra Costa Transit Authority and Metropolitan Transportation Commission and cooperatively works with the County's Taxpayer Association and City Finance Directors. Customer Relationships: It is the Auditor-Controller Office's objective to provide its customers with timely, accurate and personable service. The ('office is committed to achieving customer satisfaction and continually looks for ways to streamline processes and improve services. As always, our Office continues to maintain and improve its customer service. The Accounts Payable section of the General Accounting/Accounts Payable division specifically has enhanced its services due to the installation of the databases for Vendor history and Employee Travel demands. The ability for staff to obtain information in a timely, efficient manner has greatly benefited our customers by providing quicker responses to inquiries from vendors and departments. Additionally, easier access to information and a streamlined demand process has resulted in faster reimbursement to employees. Presently, one of our Office's biggest challenge and highest priority is meeting the payroll needs of our internal and external customers. This year the new Human Resources/Payroll and Timekeeping systems were implemented for all County departments, except Health Services. Although these Systems ultimately will allow our Office to provide departments, employees and outside agencies excellent customer service, presently the Auditor's staff, other county departments and employees, and outside agencies are experiencing the "pains" of change. County-wide Implementation of these technologically advanced systems has been difficult and problematic due to the complexity of our personnel and payroll processes, diversified workforce and failure to change long-standing business practices. However, the Auditor-Controller Office continues to strive for excellence. The Project team, consisting of representatives from Human Resources, Information Technology and our Office, is dedicated to working together to resolve all problems and issues and meet the need's of our customers. 4 SM 12-8-98 As the Team diligently sorts through issues, there is every attempt to provide ongoing support and assistance to our customers. A daily "Help" desk is available through Information Technology and a special "Hot-line" team convened for the tenth pays. Additionally, team representatives, payroll and other Auditor-Controller staff regularly respond to inquiries, solve problems and provide information and hands-on training and assistance, as necessary. It has been one of our Office's goals for a few years to develop a performance survey for each division to measure the satisfaction of its customers similar to the survey implemented by the Internal Audit division in 1994. The survey completed by the client could then be used as a means of assessing the performance of each Division and assisting managers improve their services and operations. At this time the objective has not been met primarily due to the number of staff resources devoted to the Payroll/Human Resources Implementation project. SECTION IV ANNUAL PERFORMANCE Performance Indicators by Division: GENERAL ACCO'UNTIINGIACCOUNTS PAYABLE DIVISION The General Accounting/Accounts Payable Division provides services to all County departments, fire districts and some special districts. The Division is responsible for maintaining the computerized general accounting records and for processing demands, purchase orders and contracts. ♦ Financial Record Keeping 30+Dpts.f35 Districts ♦ Vendor Payments $722,4061190 ♦ Vendor Checks 104,995 to SM 12-8-98 ♦ Demand Payments $2,504,715 i Demand Checks 19,500 WELFARE (SECTION) This section, which currently is underneath Administration, is responsible for handling the County's Welfare Accounting unit. i Welfare Payments $102,366,600 ♦ Welfare Checks 241,730 ♦ Food Stamps ATP's $265201,440 ♦ Food Sumps Coupons 152,900 PAYROLL. & BUDGETS DIVISION The Payroll/Budgets division is responsible for processing payroll for all County departments, most fire districts and some non-county regional agencies. The division also is responsible for assisting in preparing the budget documents for the County and special districts, including compilation and generation of all schedules and monitoring expenditures for budget compliance. The Division also is responsible for administering the Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes program. * Payroll Payments $4341800,000 ♦ Payroll Checks & Direct Deposit 200,040 SD.3 12-8-98 ♦ Wage Attachments & Levies $917,000 ♦ W-2s Issued 10,950 INTERNAL AUDIT DIVISION The Internal Audit Division is responsible for developing and executing audit programs for the examination, verification and analysis of the financial records, procedures and internal controls of County departments, special districts and other agencies governed by the Board of Supervisors. This Division provides reports to management that include objective analyses, appraisals', comments, and recommendations on County financial operations. The Internal Audit staff also is involved in special projects such as providing financial analyses and consultation on new systems, resolution of grant audit findings and general accounting assistance to County departments. The Internal Audit Division also produces the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, which continues to receive an Award of Excellence. ♦ Completed Audits 22 ♦ Completed Special Projects 2 Including: Treasurer's cash (quarterly), Treasury Oversight Committee; Retirement Association; Airports; and various departments and special districts. PROPERTY TAX/COST ACCOUNTING DIVISION The Property Tax Division is responsible for allocating and accounting for property takes and assessments. This Division also is responsible for coordinating SB90 claims and preparing the countywide Cost Allocation Plan.Plan. 12 SD.3 12-8-98 + Distributed Taxes 204 Jurisdictions ♦ Property Taxes & Assessments Allocated $900,OOO,O00 Distribution: County 13%; Special Districts 21%; Cities 9%; Redevelopment Agencies 8%; Schools 49%. PRIMARY ACCOMPLISHMENTS • Implemented a new Human Resources/Payroll and Timekeeping Systems for over 8,000 county and special district employees. • Worked with the trial courts and the County Administrator's Office to implement the changes required by AB 233, which essentially transferred funding responsibility for the trial courts from the County to the State. • Worked on the annual TRAN program and to monitor and account for the Pension Obligation Bond's. • Reorganized the Office resulting in the elimination of one Principal Accountant position. • Worked with the Purchasing division of the General Services department to implement a purchase card system to streamline the County's purchasing process. • Received Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting. 13 SM 12-8-98 SECTION V CHALLENGES AND NEW DIRECTIONS ChallengeslThe Future The primary challenge for the remainder of this year is to successfully transition the Health Services Department over to the neve Payroll/Human Resources and Timekeeping Systems and to stabilize payroll operations. Our future goal is to maximize the functionality of these new systems to provide the most efl'•tcient, expedient and streamlined payroll process. this is a big challenge. In order to be successful, a close, ongoing working relationship with Human Resources and Information Technology is necessary to fully integrate our services for our customers. Another key to our success is the ability to effectuate business changes within the County. Our Office is certain that all of these challenges can be met and ultimately the County will reap the benefits from this innovative technology. Another great challenge is preparing for tomorrow's work demands while meeting the needs of today. It is imperative that our Office continues to analyze its operations, explore technology, strengthen employee level and team-building skills and provide an overall healthy environment that welcomes the future and promotes change. 14 s!1!3 > > c t C7 y z m m r= r D p, m m K � � C) mo n M -4 . 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