HOUSTON, Texas – When Houston Mayor John Whitmire was elected, he promised a citywide audit to identify waste and inefficiencies. The results are now in, and they reveal significant areas for improvement.
The audit, conducted by Ernst & Young, highlights issues such as credit card abuse, redundant staffing, and waste. Mayor Whitmire emphasized that the report points out where the city can save money. The city council commissioned the study last May, and Whitmire has pledged not to increase the city’s tax rate until these inefficiencies are addressed to save taxpayers money.
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The 221-page report assesses all 22 city departments. Key findings include poor oversight of purchasing cards (P-cards) issued to city employees. Some employees were found to split purchases into multiple payments to avoid triggering transaction limits and made purchases from prohibited vendors. Additionally, the HR, finance, and IT departments have overlapping positions across multiple departments, leading to waste and duplication. Furthermore, about 80 percent of all city contracts are awarded to just a few vendors.
In a statement, Mayor Whitmire explained, “It is so revealing as to why Houstonians are so frustrated and why I will not go to them and ask for more resources until we, in my judgment, gain their confidence that we’re using their money wisely.”
“This efficiency study highlights my commitment to responsible governance and is an important step toward restoring trust and accountability in how our city government works for Houstonians,” said Mayor Whitmire. “We take these findings seriously and are already taking steps to eliminate waste, duplication, and corruption while ensuring taxpayer dollars are managed efficiently and transparently.”
Other report highlights include:
- non-compliant use of city credit cards
- employees who spend too much time reading emails and attending meetings instead of effectively serving the public
- 40% of supervisors who manage three or fewer employees
The report outlines steps the city will take to reduce inefficiencies, save money, and better serve taxpayers. In response to the findings of the citywide efficiency study, Mayor Whitmire’s administration has launched a plan to address the issues identified.
The plan includes several key initiatives:
- Focus on results: The city will overhaul its approach to tracking and reporting progress by introducing updated performance dashboards accessible to the public.
- Simplifying government operations: The city aims to redesign its organizational structures to cut down on unnecessary bureaucracy, establish clear career paths, and equip municipal teams with the necessary resources to perform effectively.
- Improve spending practices: The administration plans to refine procurement processes to eliminate waste, identify cost savings, and ensure that vendors adhere to the high standards expected by the city of Houston.
- Bolstering Financial Oversight: The city will implement stricter controls and monitoring systems to protect taxpayer dollars and minimize risks.
Check here for the full report.
LOOK OUT FOR IT: The KPRC 2 Investigates team is looking into thousands of pages of spending records from the City of Houston. We’ll let you know what we find.
