Columbus - Auditor of State Dave Yost praised the Cincinnati City Council for their unanimous, bipartisan vote yesterday to authorize a performance audit to “skinny down” the city’s Department of Public Services.
 
“These are hard times, and the people of Cincinnati are well-served by this decision to use a cutting-edge process to find smart savings,” Auditor Yost said.  “Across the board cuts can endanger vital services.  A performance audit can often find savings through efficiencies and best practices that will preserve the level of service.”  
 
On June 13, 2011, the Cincinnati City Council passed a motion to engage the Auditor of State’s office to identify cost savings through a performance audit of all city departments and divisions.  These departments include public services, police and fire administration, transportation and engineering, building and inspections, and enterprise technology solutions.
 
In a unanimous vote yesterday, council passed an emergency funding ordinance to authorize the transfer of $80,000 to conduct a performance audit.  The focus of this audit will be the Department of Public Services.  The ordinance was sponsored by Councilman Charlie Winburn, and the scope of the performance audit will include an analysis of the city’s sanitation and facilities management operations and fleet services.
 
Performance audits are designed to provide cost savings, revenue enhancements, and/or efficiency improvements.  The process usually takes four to six months to complete and will provide city leaders with recommendations in the form of a report.  City leaders also will receive regular updates from the Auditor of State’s office throughout the audit period to aid the city in the decision-making process for the next budget cycle.