But would a thorough, traceable City Report suffice?
| How did the Fund harvest disappear, and why is this disclosure a mystery? |
| We grew the $$$$ M |
Ms. Tinfow must be complimented as a master of understatement. The city of Pacifica had no finance director from July 2007 until Ms. Tinfow was hired following city manager Steve Rhodes' retirement in 2013. We may be the only city in the county that followed such a foolish and dangerous policy of lacking financial oversight.
In the column she also tells us: 'I know that some residents thought I was conducting a "forensic audit' but that's not the case." Well, there's a big problem in Pacifica, and it's a trust problem, in which the majority of Pacifica voters do not trust the actions of their local government. If anyone doubts that, look at the last three attempts by Pacifica to pass tax measures, resulting in blowout defeats.
I would suggest to our local politicians and top city staffers that if you'd like to have a snowball's chance of passing a tax/bond measure of any kind in this town, a forensic audit looking at every line of the records is what is needed to show that you are serious about financial transparency.
We need to know how the finances got so crossed up, where the money went, and who's responsible."
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Related, "Forensic Audit". State of CA Controller's Office (SCO), Audit Programs. Definition. Overview (student), ACCA Global. Business/Individual, Investopedia. Example, City of Cudahy, CA., 7/1/10-7/30/12. SCO Audit Report,pdf pages 41, ... "The Mayor requested the SCO to conduct a forensic audit of the City's internal financial controls," (Introduction, paragraph 2, page 5).
Note graphics: Tree from Working Carers. Harvested revenue bowl from Pando daily. The above Pacifica Tribune Letter to the Editor was electronically viewed as one paragraph.
Posted by Kathy Meeh
39 comments:
So the official explanation is "Don't Suspect Us Because We're Stupid". This is the best this council can come up with? Hey, city council and senior staff, present and past, I can't make any promises. You new employees ought to be concerned about what you've stepped into. What was left of public trust and confidence in city government is quickly being replaced by suspicion.
Yep. It's pretty much: "Nothing to worry about, folks. We're not criminals, just completely incompetent!"
By 1st July 15,Grand Jury Reports come out.Wonder if Pacifica's financial accounting failures will come up for investigation?They should!
1050 Not likely. Pacifica has a reputation for inept governance. Outsiders roll their eyes at the antics and messes and assume it's just another attack of the stupids. That's a dangerous assumption and one we can't afford. Meanwhile, council circles the wagons, sends out the emissaries, and hopes it will all go away. I genuinely respect and trust several of our city council members, but they are wrong in how this is being handled. As elected officials it's time for you to listen to your conscience instead of legal counsel, advisors or even your colleagues. Do your duty. This will not go away.
Ignorance of the law and regulations, is no excuse!
Mary Ann, hand picked Tinfoil, to get here buddies on the library group, their bloated $35,000,000 pie in the sky library.
Remember this when she runs again.
How is this different from Vreelandocomics?
352, what is happening is quite different than the 2002-2010 (?) "Vreelandocomics" NIMBY strangle-hold on City Council. The 2012-14 city council brought-in General Manager Lori Tinfow (and her financial team result).
There is much remedial clean-up and "fixing our economy" work needed going forward, and that is in process. To the extent Councilmember Mary Ann Nihart was and is involved in this transition is to her credit.
Ok Kathy.
But when I drive around town, it still looks the same.
City Hall just added more staff and ran up more debt.
Until a forensic Audit is done the City has no proof or idea of what really happen to all that money. At this point in time Lori's opinion that nothing illegal happen is just that an opinion not a fact driven statement.
Lanelle, Digre and deJarnutt are all still in town. Let's ask them.
Ritzma is still in the bay area, as is Tanner. Let's ask them.
Rhodes is still available let's ask him.
We don't need to conjecture, we need to investigate.
There is always the power of subpoena and diggging "under oath" if any of these players insist on pleading ignorant. The risk is they will all blame Vreeland.
726, the political/economic maladies in this city occurred over 35+ years, and with loss of productive land, some of it is permanent. (Good point from you, progress in this City is visually stagnant).
Tom 730, fine detailed Forensic Audits are very expensive, especially with a time period covering a possible 10 year period. If the City spent the lost revenue in bulk transfers to pay general fund type bills, a tracking audit report might suffice.
City Manager Lori Tinfow and Assistant City Manager Lorenzo Hines, Jr., CPA seem satisfied the accounting errors are tracking, not malfeasance. (However, "Rob Peter to pay Paul" City accounting, while appearing to have a sufficient City budget, seems to be a very old trick in this City.)
I do agree that some form of accountable public audit report is warranted, and hope we get that. And if the public report is done in-house, FMV that's fine too.
"Transition?"
L-O-L
How long are you gonna be beating the transition drum? Nihart's been on council for eight years and Tinfow has been on the job just shy of two.
The honeymoon ended a long time ago for these two--time for some honest answers to some unpleasant questions!
Kathy
I am the source of good points! And good advise.
Kathy, every driver who the cops pull over say. Not me I wasn't speeding.
The judge hears, but I had two beers after work.
I wanted to pay them the money I owed, but just didn't get around it.
The check is in the mail.
CYA=cover your ass!
853, in your apparent reference to my 708 comment, next you'll be blaming President Obama for the great recession, and questioning why he alone could not fix that little structural problem overnight. Brilliant, (not)!
We're talking about nearly 5 million dollars and it could easily be more. We're talking about inter-fund lending which is still going on except now we're wearing our seat belts. We're talking about a problem that clearly began in the heyday of the Vreeland era and for some the chance to blame him one more time may be more important than finding the whole truth for this town. Others will claim the prospect of speaking ill of the dead is distasteful and we should just move on. Let those groups cancel out each other. We're talking about believing some smart people didn't know about this huge wart of a deficit growing right under their elected nose for many years. It's not easy, but I'm willing to believe there was a moment of truth last year with the new CM saying "you idiots, don't you know you can't do that?" But after that this council had the chance to do the right thing and they didn't. Now, I really don't care who gets savaged in a forensic audit or an outside investigation. They can comfort each other. Don't care how much this one costs because we've already paid nearly 5 million. We need the truth, all of it, and I think there is a growing number of people who are going to demand we get it.
$5,000,000.00 up in smoke....
More legacy from the NIMBIES, NOBIES, Faux-Enviros and the I Got Mine's.
If Lancelle and Mary Ann plan on running again they got some serious splainin' to do.
These are the same creeps who said Peebles was a bad guy out to fleece the good souls of Pacifica.
Know thy enemy.
If Peebles had built the quarry project with the 2 4-5 * hotels we had a chance for Obama to come to Pacifica.
But in the sad case of Pacifica reality we are stuck with Mary Ann, Karen, Big Mike, Keener the Greener, and Sue!
Hell what's 5 million dollars between friends right? Peter Loeb said the city is doing just fine, He knows what he is doing, and to trust him!!
853 Hon, when you're fighting the nimby scourge, you never, ever want to look too closely at their replacements, lest you be unable to tell the difference.
135 LMAO. This council is using the Loeb playbook to explain the missing 5 million dollars. And as far as I'm concerned, if they can't say where it went, it's missing.
Good dialogue this evening at City Council meeting about the funds and budgets. Much more research to go, but seems they are clearing through a lot of sloppy bookkeeping. Unfortunate that for whatever reason, past city managers (going back four or so) seemed to have allowed such incompetent oversight. New staff and new city auditors (to be hired) are completing the review with multiple fresh sets of eyes.
The city really did have terrible accounting under Ritzma, which is why my first thought when I heard of the missing millions was an accounting screw-up.
I remember going through Pacifica's budget spreadsheets a few years ago, and half the money was in accounts entitled, "Miscellaneous".
That's due to Ritzma being the HR director and being moved into Finance By King Jimmy V.
7:58
That's due to Ritzma being the HR director and being moved into Finance By King Jimmy V.
........and Lancelle, and deJarnutt and Digre, lest we forget. Make no mistake, these slimy little bastards will try to nail the deceased King Vreeland to cover their own asses.
1039 Dialogue? Words aren't going to scratch this itch. People want to see a council that is angry and demanding answers. Since we're still fumbling around well over a year later, it's obvious that has NOT been the case. Really a shit job of representing the public interest! You say a string of city managers have allowed incompetent accounting and that's why the books are a mess. If that's true, and it probably is, none of them conducted 'business Pacifica style' in a vacuum or with autonomy. String of city managers? That means a string of city councils telling them to find the funds for a string of projects. But setting that aside, where's the money? What was it spent on? What safeguards are in place to prevent this? Today, are funds meant for a specific purpose safe from misuse in what is clearly the Pacifica-style of governance? Get the outside auditors in here. This issue is not going away.
1115 Your ass count is short. Ditto on slimy little bastards.
1136, as 1039 suggests, City is now run by grown-ups. What a welcome change that is!
Assistant City Manager/CPA Lorenzo Hines, Jr. said they're doing the same work as would an outside forensic audit, and they will find the trail for the 2003 Fund transfers in question. A verbal discussion about that occurred from about 3 hours, 20 minutes into the Budget meeting, and the assessment is a report will follow when the work is completed. You may want to view that approximate 20+ minutes conversation on PCT 26 video.
Additionally, confirming to Mayor Karen Ervin, Lorenzo Hines, Jr. stated better, transparent safeguards will be put in place.
Problem solved! Back to sleep Pacifica.
City Manager Lori Tinfo has degrees from Harvard and from Stanford. She said she would do an audit and make the budget 100% transparent. She found missing monies of $4 million, then found they were $4.75 million. YET Tinfow will not daylight this missing money from the City's funds -- and not one person on City Council is asking that she follow up on this.
This IS transparency. Transparent lieing.
1209 Pretty slick, aren't they? Just remember that in all things Tinfow reports to the City Council and keeps her job only as long as council is pleased. We elect five, but on every council there is a dominant personality who works "better" with senior staff and exerts influence in subtle as well as overt ways. The way this fiscal mystery has been handled--and it has definitely been handled, would make the Pope suspicious.
1209, 237 the City financial numbers screw-up probably began 10 years ago when City Councilmembers Vreeland, DeJarnatt, Digre, and Lancelle were the City Council NIMBY majority (4-1, Cal Hinton). At that time, that City Council got rid of their competent City Treasurer-- oh gosh, that was smart.
A past City Fund transfers Report will be made soon, (so stated City Manager Tinfow at a recent City Council meeting, if I understood that comment correctly).
If you really care about this Report, why not call the City and inquire when the Report may be presented at City Council-- and let us know.
Otherwise, your comments sounds like a mix-up of information (past City Fund transfer errors, confused with current fiscal year budgets).
Accounting screw ups? Money transferred between accounts and never accounted for? Money missing? Money unaccounted for?
Regardless of the BS from City Hall, the city still doesn't have any money to fix the storm related damages caused by the recent storms.
Three years after that hokey "reveal" of the missing funds this report better be prime grade A fabulous. Extra credit for a timeline of who knew what and when and when the last improper interfund transfer took place. Like a real apolitical, impartial investigation. Oh snap! What was I thinking?
418, 422 huh? View last week's City Council meeting, 2/8/16, Item 10, $450,000 sea wall repair. Also, the City has contacted the State to repair and mitigate our coastal storm damage.
There is more information on the 2/22/16 City Council Agenda. That "made simple" Agenda article is not posted here yet, so you may want to try Google: City of Pacifica/City Council.
Guess you haven't called the City about that City Funds Transfer Report yet? Let us know.
If Tinfoil gets us $29 million bucks from the state like the Tribune said she was going to this week I'll be leading the parade, but it's far more likely we're about to be insolvent.
5:22
Keep defending the meat heads down at city hall.
It will take the city from 6 months to a year to get any state money.
1009, the City/City Manager stepped-in to initially stabilize Beach Blvd immediately, then declared a State of Emergency, which has become televised nationally, even internationally. The City moved to take down 330 Esplanade Avenue, rather than allow the apartment building to fall down the cliff. The City has been monitoring the hazard of these cliffs along Esplanade for years.
The City released $450,000 to further stabilize the Beach Blvd seawall break, while the process of obtaining monies from the State is expected to materialize. And if that takes 6 months, the work continues and the Summer is well past this year's El Nino storms.
Anonymous 1009, while you apparently claim not to support the necessary emergency work the City is doing, you have offered no Plan B, no alternative vision statement, no description of what the City shoulda, coulda done different to address this coastal emergency. Further, you offer no concern about the impact of this City and private infrastructure failure.
Since the City Hall team is currently functioning effectively, I suspect the true NIMBY "meathead" is you.
Kathy
Please google sea wall then google retaining wall.
Beach Blvd is a retaining wall, normally used to shore up a slope.
The city fixed Beach Blvd on the cheap and all the infrastructure is under Beach Blvd. All the sewage from Northern Pacifica travels under Beach Blvd. That was the reason why the retaining wall was built. Most of Beach Blvd. has been hollowed out by erosion and wave action.
Did you live here when Beach Blvd. had the dirt bank?
707, the sewage pump station is located on Montacito Avenue, mid-way East of Beach Blvd/City Council Chambers, west of Palmetto Avenue. My recall is that the main northern sewage line runs under Palmetto Avenue. (But, Google did not understand that question.)
I remember more beach, the dirt bank you mentioned, and no pier. The "retaining wall" was built after that, 35-40 years ago?
If this were southern California the land erosion solution might be to bring-in more sand.
As Councilmember Nihart mentioned at one City Council meeting, the Bay is being dredged for sand use in construction. I'm not sure about the science, but dredging sand in the Bay may affect erosion along our coast and the Bay (I think that was her concern as well).
Google search brought-up the second Leland Group, Beach Blvd property development evaluation, 2/11, pdf pages 40. Note: broad development graphic, pages 2, 9, 24, 26. Spreadsheet page 25. Recommended uses: housing, civic, boutique hotel pages 27-30. Pump station: pages 8, appendices page 33. No new library in this study.
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