GNV audit finds some issues with purchasing cards 

Gainesville City Hall
Gainesville City Hall
File photo by Suzette Cook

An internal Gainesville city audit did not find any fraudulent purchases in a review of purchasing card transactions but did identify potential issues in the review, including three declining balancing cards each with spending limits in excess of $250,000. 

At the city’s audit committee Monday, Interim City Auditor Brecka Anderson and her team made the first of four reports this year concerning Gainesville’s General Government and Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) 612 purchasing cards – or p-cards. 

During this first report period, the city auditor’s office looked at $236,417 worth of p-card purchases from a two-year period between January 2021 and December 2022. The 170 reviewed transactions represent 1% of the $20 million total p-card spending during the period. 

Become A Member

Mainstreet does not have a paywall, but pavement-pounding journalism is not free. Join your neighbors who make this vital work possible.

The city’s auditors examined each transaction to see whether the purchases were for business-related activities and had proper approval and adhered to set spending limits. They also checked that sales tax was either not charged or was refunded and that p-card holders provided receipts or other documentation for the purchases. 

Cynthia Curry
Courtesy city of Gainesville Cynthia Curry

Among the things that the audit team reported Monday: 

  • Three cardholders with no monthly spending limits were assigned declining balance cards – one at $250,000, one at $500,000 and one at $700,000. 
  • Four invoices were split between multiple payments to avoid the p-card’s single transaction limits. 
  • Four items purchased on p-cards were not allowed as p-card transactions, which included a payment of an employee’s home internet service. 
  • 22 purchases did not have appropriate prior approval. 
  • Nine card holders had monthly credit limits above $35,000, and those high limits were not necessary given the person’s purchase history. 

Sue Wang, the city’s director of finance, said the three large declining balance cards were assigned to employees who make large purchases for the city: a GRU IT employee who buys computers for the city, an employee with the city’s vehicle fleet who buys parts for fleet maintenance and an employee with the Regional Transit System who similarly buys parts for the city’s buses. 

“[The declining balance cards have been] a standing practice for a long time,” Wang said. “It doesn’t mean it’s right, so now is the opportunity to review those processes and see whether that’s appropriate.” 

City Manager Cynthia W. Curry said that as of March 1 she had pulled back several p-cards on the general government side, reducing the number issued to one per department except for Gainesville Fire Rescue, the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Arts Department, and the city’s six charter officers. 

“This action was taken to address the State Auditor General’s findings, prepare for their return, and review other best practice measures to make us accountable and responsive,” Curry said in an email interview after the meeting. “This will give us time to revise our procurement card procedures,  and evaluate mandatory training for all card holders.”   

Curry said the three large declining balance cards were among those that she had pulled from employees. 

First issued around 2006, the declining balance cards were in use because the purchases of things like parts for the city’s electric buses were often expensive and frequently exceeded the $20,000 monthly limit for regular purchase card transactions, Curry said. 

Peter DeMaris, an internal auditor for the city, also said that the general government and GRU p-card processes are different, and each group has its own policies regarding approvals, transaction limits and required documentation. One of the audit team’s recommendations was to bring the GRU p-card processes more in line with the rest of the city.  

GRU general manager Tony Cunningham said GRU has 385 employees with p-card – and “the vast majority” of GRU cards have purchase limits between $2,000 and $5,000. Some of the GRU employees with p-cards are at the utilities’ power plants while others may work in the field.  

During the two-year time frame of the audit, GRU employees made $11.4 million in p-card purchases. The general government side made $8.9 million in p-card purchases during the two-year audit period. 

“The overall spend is fairly small compared to the operation and maintenance expenses, but it still is a significant amount as you can see from the audit,” Cunningham said.  

GRU General Manager Tony Cunningham
Courtesy of city of Gainesville Tony Cunningham

Cunningham said he was working with GRU supervisors to improve their approval processes – several of the purchases without approval on the GRU side were the result of supervisors not giving official approval by a deadline. 

“One of the things coming out of the audit was to improve the training and setting those deadlines and then reporting of when people miss those deadlines,” he said. 

Curry said the city had discovered that employees were making p-card purchases instead of using a purchase order, which is the city’s preferred way to buy things, because the p-card transactions were faster and easier. 

Commissioner Cynthia Chestnut, who is not on the audit committee but sat in on Monday’s meeting, said using a purchase order would help with issues related to prior approvals and help determine in advance whether the city is being charged sales tax. 

“It seems to me that would be the better way to go,” Chestnut said. “It may be time consuming, but it may save us some money and save us some heartache.” 

Mayor Harvey Ward, who chairs the audit committee, said the city needs to review its policies but that he often hears from small businesses that they would like to have easier ways to do business with the city. 

“On the local small business end, they would certainly rather be paid upfront than wait a month or two to be paid,” Ward said. 

Harold Monk, who is an external CPA appointed to the audit committee, said he was concerned about the transactions where single purchases were split into different payments to avoid a single transaction limit. 

“It’s not just wrong, but it could be criminal in some instances,” Monk said. 

Although Monk said he was bothered by the employees’ requests to split the purchases into multiple transactions, he said he was more concerned that a merchant was willing to do that. 

“There ought to be some consequence to that vendor,” Monk said. “If they are going to accommodate fraud, they shouldn’t be a vendor for the city in the future.” 

A second p-card report along with a travel reimbursements review is scheduled for the next quarterly audit committee meeting on June 21. 

Also from Monday’s audit committee meeting: 

The new comptroller is expected to start in April, Wang said. 

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
2 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Juan

Mayor Harvey Ward, who chairs the audit committee. OMG!Harold Monk, who is an external CPA appointed to the audit committee, said he was concerned about the transactions where single purchases were split into different payments to avoid a single transaction limit.

“It’s not just wrong, but it could be criminal in some instances,” Monk said. Please Help us JLAC and Governor Desantis. Things are coming off the wheels in Alachua County

Jeff Gehmann

This is what a proper audit committee for a municipality should look like: (actual wording in use at other locations, there are variations of course. Gainesville’s model is among the worst. Also, the Audit Committee is responsible for Hiring or Firing the City Auditor.

The Audit Committee shall consist of five voting members. The members shall be residents of the City of xxxx. At least four of the members shall have experience in auditing and shall be Certified Public Accountants. The members shall be recommended two each by the local chapters of the FL Society of Certified Public Accountants and the Institute of Internal Auditors, and one by the local chapter of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.