Current Audit Schedule

Audits & special studies to begin in fiscal year 2025

(July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025)

In process

Audits

Special studies

  • History of the Auditor’s Office report

Recommendation Status Evaluations

To start

Audits & initial concepts

Note: During the initial phase of an audit, concepts/scopes of focus are subject to change as audit teams learn about issue areas.

Supportive Housing Services

In 2020, Metro voters passed the Supportive Housing Services measure that created funds for supportive housing services for people who experience or are at risk of experiencing homelessness. Since then, there has been a robust public discussion about the extent to which local governments are using SHS funds effectively. At the county, the majority of SHS funds are spent out of the Joint Office of Homeless Services, the Health Department, and the Department of County Human Services, particularly the Youth & Family Services Division. The county’s SHS plan for fiscal year 2024 noted populations that should benefit from SHS programming, including Black, Indigenous, Latine, Asian, Pacific Islander, and other people of color; families with children; youth; domestic violence/sexual violence survivors; and people with behavioral health issues. This audit will answer questions including how the county has spent SHS dollars and the extent to which those expenditures align with criteria for using SHS dollars.

Elections Division

We have not conducted a performance audit of Multnomah County Elections in the last 15 years. There were ballot errors in at least two recent elections, which the county corrected. In the May 2023 primary, a data entry error required reprinting 560,000 ballots and delayed the mailing of ballots. In the May 2024 primary, the county issued replacement ballots for 9,300 voters because their original ballots were missing a Metro measure. These errors have occurred at a time of increasing community concern about election integrity. The Elections Division is preparing to implement ranked choice voting for the City of Portland this fall, and for county candidate races no later than 2026. This audit will assess the performance of Multnomah County Elections, specifically addressing the recent ballot errors and the implementation of ranked choice voting.

Land & building purchases

The county has made numerous land or building purchases in the last 10 years, and is currently preparing to fund provider purchases of land/buildings with SHS funds. We have received complaints to the Good Government Hotline that the county is paying over market costs and does not have properties appraised when making the purchases. In some cases, costs for improvements have ballooned over what the county forecasted, such as in the case of the Behavioral Health Resource Center, which was found to have serious deficiencies after purchase. This audit would review the due diligence the county has done when making purchases.

Countywide customer service

Phone and email contacts are important avenues for accessing critical services. The county has numerous public facing phone numbers and email addresses that should support public access to services. Our ombudsperson has recently received complaints that community members have not been able to reach staff by phone. This audit would assess whether the public can access county services by phone and email in a timely manner. 

Countywide trans and gender expansive inclusion

Nationally, legislation perpetuating danger for trans and gender expansive people is leading to a probable influx of these groups to Multnomah County in search of a safer and more inclusive environment. Basic Rights Oregon and many others have observed inequities in housing, employment, imprisonment, and other outcomes for trans and gender expansive people, especially if they are also Black, Indigenous, or other people of color. This audit will assess whether county departments are responsibly gathering Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity data (SOGI), offering facilities, methods of equitably conveying pronouns, medical and mental health support, and other resources that meet the specific needs of this population. The audit will also assess whether county operations internally are adequately addressing needs and barriers that trans and gender expansive people face as employees.

Special studies

County ethical culture survey

This is a recurring special study that the office conducts to find out how county employees are experiencing the ethical culture of the county government. The survey results help inform future audit choices and provide critical information to county government leaders and staff about their perceptions of accountability, pressure to violate ethical standards, and whether employees feel comfortable speaking up about unethical behavior.

Reparations special study

The complex context for government in our nation and county includes the government’s role in the displacement and genocide of Indigenous communities and the enslavement of Black people for the benefit and financial gain of Western European settlers. Our history also includes Oregon being founded as a Whites only state; the 1857 state constitution prohibited Black people from entering the state, and prevented Black people who already lived in Oregon from owning property or making contracts. It wasn’t until 1925 that voters removed these exclusions. Additionally, during World War II, Oregonians of Japanese descent were incarcerated in American internment camps.

These and other historical acts of colonization, exploitation, and discrimination continue to cause harm to BIPOC community members through systemic racism, significant socio-economic disadvantages, and multi-generational psychological trauma. Acknowledging past and present harms is a first and necessary step toward Multnomah County becoming a more equitable and just community for everyone. This report will provide information on what other jurisdictions have done in regard to reparations and land back movements, and can inform frameworks of micro-reparations for under-resourced communities of color.

Recommendation Status Evaluations