County auditors.

(1) Existing law enumerates the officers of a county, including the office of the auditor, prescribes their duties, and permits a county board of supervisors to consolidate, separate, and reconsolidate their duties, as specified. Existing law requires the board of supervisors, at least biennially, to audit county financial accounts and records of all county officers responsible for the care, management, collection, or disbursement of county money, as specified. Existing law requires the board of supervisors to supervise the official conduct of all county officers, particularly with regard to the functions and duties of these county officers as they relate to the assessing, collecting, safekeeping, management, or disbursement of public funds. This bill would require, in any county with both an elected auditor-controller and a population exceeding 3,000,000 people, that the auditor-controller, and not the board of supervisors, examine and audit, or cause to be audited, the financial accounts and records of all officers having responsibility for the care, management, collection, or disbursement of county money, as described above. The bill would require this audit to be filed with the board of supervisors. The bill would require, in any county with both an elected auditor-controller and a population exceeding 3,000,000 people, that the authority of the board of supervisors to supervise the official conduct of county officers not be construed to affect the independent auditing and accounting functions of the auditor-controller. By increasing the duties of local officials in a county with the above-described characteristics, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law generally prescribes the duties of the county auditor. Existing law requires the county auditor or auditor-controller, as specified, to be the chief accounting officer of the county. Upon order of the board of supervisors, existing law requires the auditor or auditor-controller to prescribe the accounting forms and methods of all offices under the control of the board of supervisors and to supervise generally practices in those offices, which includes the ability to review departmental and countywide internal controls. This bill would require a county auditor or auditor-controller also to be the chief auditor of the county. The bill would grant the auditor or auditor-controller, as part of its supervisory powers, the authority to audit, rather than review, departmental and countywide internal controls. The bill would require, in reference to the duties of auditors, that the term "county auditor" include certain county offices that have been consolidated. The bill would prescribe requirements for the head of a county auditing unit. The bill would prohibit a board of supervisors from creating or operating a separate auditing unit outside of the county auditor, except if the separate auditing unit was established before 1981, and would prohibit the board from transferring any auditing unit away from the county auditor. By increasing the duties of local officials in a county with the above-described characteristics, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law authorizes a county auditor or controller to establish and maintain a whistleblower hotline for receiving information regarding fraud, waste, or abuse by local government employees, subject to certain requirements. This bill would require, in a county with an elected auditor-controller and a population exceeding 3,000,000, that the county auditor-controller be the sole county officer with the authority to maintain a whistleblower hotline, as described above. By increasing the duties of local officials in a county with the above-described characteristics, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4) Existing law authorizes tax-defaulted property to be redeemed until the right of redemption terminates. Existing law requires the audit of a tax collector's records and accounts related to redemption of tax-defaulted property at least once every 3 years. This bill would require, in a county with an elected auditor-controller and a population exceeding 3,000,000 people, that the auditor-controller either conduct the audit described above or retain the services of an independent certified public accountant or licensed public accountant to perform the audit, in accordance with specified standards. By increasing the duties of local officials in a county with the above-described characteristics, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (5) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.