politics

Portland Voters Will Consider Giving Independent Auditor More Freedom

By Amelia Templeton (OPB)
May 2, 2017 3:59 p.m.

Portland's auditor is an elected official who manages an office of about 60 employees and works on ensuring government transparency and oversight.

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The auditor oversees the city’s Independent Police Review division and the city’s ombudsman, who investigates citizen and whistleblower complaints.

But the current auditor, Mary Hull Caballero, says that her job as a watchdog has been undermined by the way her office is set up.

“There are six elected officials in the city of Portland," she said.

"Five make up the mayor and city council. And as the auditor, it’s my job to keep an eye on those five.”

But the structure of city government sometimes gets in the way, she said. For example, at present the auditor must get approval from the city’s Office of Management and Finance when she hires people or buys new software.

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That’s also an office she’s supposed to be auditing.

Those kinds of conflicts are common, Hull Caballero says.

“They occur on almost a daily basis," she said. "And they come from different directions.”

The proposed charter amendment on the ballot would let the auditor make hiring and purchasing decisions without having to consult with other city agencies.

It also takes away the city’s council’s power to set the auditor’s salary. Instead, auditors would make the same amount as council members.

As a check on all that power, at least every four years, the auditor’s office would be publicly reviewed by an outside agency.

The charter amendment would make it easier for the auditor to seek outside legal advice. Hull Caballero says that’s important, because the auditor isn’t always on the same side as the city bureaus in legal cases.

Right now, for example, the same team of city attorneys who advise the auditor also advise the mayor and the Portland Police Bureau.

“And they may advise us by saying, 'If you say that or you print that or you report that, it increases the liability to the city,'” Hull Caballero said.

The Portland City Council voted unanimously to refer the charter amendments increasing the auditor’s independence to the ballot. Portlanders will weigh in on May 16.

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