Dear Friends and Neighbors,
This month’s newsletter is largely about presentations my team and I have made to the Board of County Commissioners about recent reports we’ve completed. These presentations give Commissioners a chance to ask us about what we found and to ask county management about how they will respond to our recommendations.
These presentations are also a resource for you. They provide trustworthy information from my office about your county government. I encourage you to watch the presentations in real time or whenever is convenient for you, and to use my office’s findings to ask your own questions of county government. You can also ask me or my staff to do a similar presentation at an event or community group meeting. To do so, simply fill out this form.
Together, we can improve our county government.
Thank you,
Jennifer
Presentation on Ombudsperson investigation into the county’s contract with AMR
On July 9, County Ombudsperson Cheryl Taylor and I presented to the Board of County Commissioners about our May 2024 ombudsperson report on the county’s contract with American Medical Response.
The report focused on AMR’s non-compliance in its ambulance services contract with Multnomah County and what remedies were available to the county at crucial moments during the contract periods in question. Ombudsperson Taylor found that the county had opportunities to hold AMR accountable for ambulance response times before March 2022, and that the county established an Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council in the County Code, but did not form the council. The council was to include community members that the Board would formally appoint.
At our presentation, we reiterated our recommendations that the Board should regularly receive ambulance response time data from Emergency Medical Services staff and that the Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council should be formed.
Presentation on contract monitoring audit report
On July 16, Management Auditor Michelle Greene, Operations & Audit Director Annamarie McNiel, and I presented to the Board of County Commissioners about our June audit report titled Contract Monitoring: Consistent countywide approach needed. This report built on work that the Auditor’s Office has conducted for more than 20 years about why contract monitoring matters.
Contract monitoring is critical because it is how the county verifies whether the county and providers are meeting contract terms and performance measures. Monitoring helps ensure that people who need services are actually receiving them from contracted providers.
We looked at the contract monitoring practices of the Health Department, Department of County Human Services, Department of Community Justice, and Joint Office of Homeless Services. The audit team reviewed 53 contracts and 232 invoices for 21 providers. The audit team also surveyed providers to learn from their perspectives on contract monitoring.
We found that the departments, and divisions within the departments, were not applying contract monitoring practices consistently or equitably across providers, and that the timeliness of payments to providers also varied among departments and their divisions.
Our recommendations focused on improving the effectiveness of contract monitoring through improved standardization and coordination across the county to provide clear expectations and consistent procedures within the county and for contracted providers.
Introducing our new logos
In our county, bridges are recognizable features and critical infrastructure. The logos for our office and the ombudsperson recognize this, while also acknowledging that our office acts as a bridge between the public and their county government.
The hotline logo is straightforward and conveys how we use the hotline as a check on suspected fraud, waste, and abuse of position in county government. The four prominent pillars in the office logo represent our core functions: performance audits, our hotline, the ombudsperson, and community engagement. Similarly, the two pillars in the ombudsperson logo reflect how that role supports resolution between individual people and the county.
Save the Date: Open House event series
Join us for an opportunity to learn more about the work of the Multnomah County Auditor’s Office, which includes performance audits, the good government hotline, the ombudsperson, and community engagement.
Our team is excited to meet community members, county employees, and community partners! We are eager to share information on our office’s history and current work, as well as our re-branded mission and vision statements. We will feature resources offered by our office, and refreshments will be provided.
How to attend the Auditor’s Office Open House: RSVP here!
In-person Open House
Date: Wednesday, September 18, 2024
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM
Location: Board Room 100 and Suite 601, 501 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR
RSVP by clicking here!
Virtual Open House
Date: Thursday, September 26, 2024
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Link: https://meet.google.com/rri-amxs-bgd
Or dial: (US) +1 516-268-6845 PIN: 399 042 187#
RSVP by clicking here!
Community Engagement
On July 21, Constituent Relations & DEI Engagement Specialist Raymond De Silva and I were honored to march with Basic Rights Oregon in the Portland Pride Parade, along with other county and state elected leaders. Pride is always a joyous event that celebrates the diversity of our LGBTQIA2S+ community.
On July 26, my office joined the 4th annual Rosewood Saturday Celebration & Resource Fair, in the East Portland neighborhood. Auditor's Office staff Audit Director Caroline Zavitkovski, Management Auditor Mical Yohannes, Communications and Engagement Intern Gelsi Tuz-Uxul, Ombudsperson Intern Kate Milne, and Constituent Relations and DEI Engagement Specialist Raymond De Silva, and I were proud to have been at this event each year since it started in 2021!
If you’d like me and or staff to attend or speak at a meeting with your community group, simply fill out this form.
