What would you do to ensure that the public has faith in the independence of the auditor from the rest of the city?
I am not a career politician. I will bring an independent viewpoint to the city auditor’s office. Throughout my 35-years as a CPA in financial management, working for major Fortune 500 companies, I built a strong reputation based on integrity, transparency and accountability. These are the values in which I have lived my life and raised a family.
Following a career in private business and free from conflicts of interest, I will serve as city auditor beholden only to the residents of Long Beach.
What departments or programs would you target for an audit? Why?
My first priority is to restore integrity and trust in the office. This starts with leading by example and following general accounting standards and best practices.
There has been significant staff turnover within the city auditor’s office. I will assess remaining staff, the capabilities of the office and fill the gaps with highly qualified public servants.
Rebuilding public trust and demonstrating transparency are essential. I will commission a truly independent outside audit of books looking for additional violations of best practices or undetected payment schemes.
I will work to ensure that Long Beach residents are properly and fully refunded the $30 million in water and sewer fees that were recently ruled unconstitutional by the California Supreme Court.
A lot of the auditor’s work, while posted to the city website, goes unnoticed by the public. What would you do to make sure your office has a more meaningful relationship with residents to ensure your work is accessible to them?
The public should have open access to how their money is spent in Long Beach. Transparency ensures accountability. I will work to bring Open Checkbook to Long Beach, to provide public access to data related to government spending, budgets, contracts and revenue.
What do you think the mission of the city auditor is and how do you think you can accomplish that?
The overarching mission of the city auditor is to ensure that taxpayer money is properly raised and spent. This begins with leading by example in following general accounting standards and best practices.
As a CPA with 35-years of financial management experience working with major Fortune 500 companies, I have the knowledge, expertise and experience to serve as city auditor.