Dear friends and neighbors,
As I enter into my fourth month in office as Multnomah County’s Auditor, I’ve been reflecting on the work of the Auditor’s Office and how we support the overarching Multnomah County mission to help people, particularly our most vulnerable community members. The Multnomah County Auditor’s Office conducts and publishes in-depth, comprehensive audits of County programs that articulate what is working well in government, while identifying barriers and obstacles that impede the County’s mission. The mission of the my office is to ensure that Multnomah County government is efficient, effective, equitable, transparent, and fully accountable to all who live in our county. In order to achieve this mission, I have included in my office’s 2020 budget package a program to advance equity and inclusion, and help the Office to identify root causes of systemic issues. This modest investment of $175,000 will allow the Auditor’s Office to fulfill Multnomah County’s established goals and values around equity and inclusion, aligning our work with the Equity and Empowerment Lens developed by the Office of Diversity and Equity, the Workforce Equity Strategic Plan, and the County’s recent review of community involvement. My intention is to make sure that the concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as community wisdom are integrated into our work - not just for fiscal year 2020, but in the years to come. My goal is to ensure that when my term is up, the office is better equipped to serve the public interest and looks more like the diverse employees and the public that we serve.
About the Auditor’s Budget
- The Auditor’s Office is less than 1% of the overall County budget.
- Our proposed budget for fiscal year 2020 is $1.8 million.
- The budget is mostly personnel costs and training costs. Each auditor in the office must earn 80 continuing professional education credits every two years, and earning those credits costs money.
- The Auditor’s budget includes non-discretionary items:
- The County’s roughly $186,000 contract with the external financial auditor for the County’s required Comprehensive Annual Financial Report
- Roughly $207,000 in internal services fees that apply to all County offices
- The Auditor’s Office has 9 employees, including the County Auditor. For comparison, our office has the same number of people as the County’s Communications Office, and less than half the staff of the County Attorney’s Office.
In order to know what to prioritize, County Commissioners need to hear from you! I hope you’ll consider attending a public hearing to learn more about the county budget, ask questions or express an opinion. Meetings are in the evening from 6:00pm - 8:00pm. Interpreters will be available in Russian, Somali, Spanish and Vietnamese. If you require an interpreter in another language or accessibility services, please contact the Board Clerk at least 72 hours in advance at 503.988.5274 or by e-mail at boardclerk@multco.us.
Public Budget Hearings:
- April 29th: Public Hearing #1 @ IRCO (10301 NE Glisan St, Portland, OR 97220)
- May 8th: Public Hearing #2 @ Multnomah Bldg - Board Room (502 SE Hawthorne Blvd)
- May 14th: Public Hearing #3 @ East County Building - Sharron Kelley Rooms (NE 8th Street, Gresham, OR 97030)
- May 22nd: Public Hearing #4 @ Roosevelt High School (6941 N Central St)
The Auditor's Budget will be presented at the Work Session on Wednesday, 5/8 between 10:30am-12:00pm in the Board Room of the Multnomah Building, located at 501 Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR, 97214.
Full schedule of Budget Work Sessions and Public Hearings
You can also provide input on what you think budget priorities should be by contacting your commissioner directly:
Deborah Kafoury, County Chair
503-988-3308
Sharon Meieran, District 1
503-988-5220
Susheela Jayapal, District 2
503-988-5219
Jessica Vega Pederson, District 3
503-988-5217
Lori Stegmann, District 4
503-988-5213
See links to Auditor’s budget request (these are called Program Offers).
Learn more about the County’s proposed budget and the budget process.
Best,
Jennifer
Risk Management Audit
On April 2nd, I presented my office's Risk Management report along with auditors Craig Hunt and Marc Rose to the County Commissioners. The focus of our report was to establish an enterprise risk management (ERM) system at the County. The County has done a good job managing what we traditionally think of as risk and is poised to build an effective ERM system that is woven into County operations at every level. An ERM system that meets best practices will help the County take advantage of opportunities to serve our vulnerable community members, as well as help the County avoid loss of the resources and sensitive data entrusted to us.
June Community Coffee with the Auditor
Join me this summer for coffee and conversation! I'll be having a community coffee meet and greet on Saturday, June 1 from 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM at Stomping Grounds Coffee in Fairview! This is a chance to talk together about the work my office has been doing and to share your questions, concerns and ideas.
Stomping Grounds is located at:21825 NE Halsey Street, Fairview, OR 97024
If you need an accommodation, translator, or childcare (though kids are welcome to attend!) please contact my office at mult.auditor@multco.us or call 503-988-3320 by Monday, May 27.