AUDITING DEPARTMENT

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter art. VI, ch. 4

in effect

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter § 6-400 Functions.

§ 6-400. Functions. The Auditing Department shall have the power and its duty shall be to perform the following functions: (a) Approval of Disbursement Requisitions. It shall examine and approve or disapprove all requisitions submitted to it through the Director of Finance by any officer, department, board or commission of the City or other agency to which an appropriation has been made. The Department shall approve a requisition which it finds to be for a purpose comprehended by the appropriation against which it is drawn and in a proper amount. Otherwise the requisition shall be disapproved and returned to the Director of Finance. (b) Orders for the Payment of Money Out of the Treasury. The Department shall issue its order to the City Treasurer authorizing the Treasurer to issue checks for payments out of moneys in the City Treasury as called for by an approved requisition. 240 (c) Audits of the Financial Affairs of Officers, Departments, Boards, Commissions and Other Agencies. The Department shall audit at least annually the affairs of every officer, department, board, including the accounts of any board of directors of City trusts, and commission of the City and, as far as may be necessary, the accounts of any other agency receiving an appropriation from the City. No contract with an agency shall be valid unless it contains a provision granting the Department the discretion to audit the affairs of the agency as authorized in this section during the term of the contract. Audits shall include all collections made on behalf of the City by an officer, department, board, commission or other agency. The accounts of police and firefighter's pension funds receiving appropriations from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania shall be audited annually. An audit report shall be made on every audit. 241 Special audits of the affairs of any officer, department, board, commission or agency may be made whenever in the judgment of the City Controller they appear necessary, and shall be made whenever the Mayor shall call upon the City Controller to make them. Copies of all audit reports made by the Auditing Department shall be promptly submitted to the Mayor and to the Council. For purposes of this section, agency shall mean any entity which: (1) receives funds from the City, and either (2) is created by, or whose board of directors is in whole or part appointed by, one or more City officials or bodies; or (3) that is organized pursuant to legal authority granted to it by City ordinance. 242 (d) Recommendations. The Department shall from time to time make recommendations to the several officers, departments, boards, commissions or other agencies receiving appropriations from the City for the improved efficiency and economy of their operations involving the expenditure of City funds. ANNOTATION Sources: Act of June 25, 1919, P.L. 581, as amended, Article XII, Section 3, as amended; the Fiscal Code of 1929, Act of April 9, 1929, P.L. 343, Article IV. Purposes: 1. The Auditing Department's approval of disbursement requisitions is required to prevent the improper disbursement of City funds. In the absence of screening at this stage, funds might be improperly disbursed and their recovery at a later date might be difficult and might involve considerable expense to the City. A disbursement is improper if it is not made for a purpose comprehended by the appropriation against which it is drawn. If a requisition is approved, the Department issues its order on the City Treasurer authorizing him to make payment. 2. The Auditing Department is the official agency of the City for auditing annually every officer and agency, City or otherwise, receiving appropriations from the City. Collections as well as disbursements are to be audited. Special provision is made in the case of police and firemen's pension funds receiving appropriations from the Commonwealth because of statutory requirements. Act of June 25, 1919, P.L. 581, Article XII, Section 3, as amended. The final step of the auditing process is a report of every audit so that the result will be made known to the Council and to the executive branch. 3. The Controller is authorized to make special audits wherever he deems them necessary and whenever the Mayor requests him to do so for circumstances may from time to time indicate that an immediate audit is an urgent necessity. 4. As a result of its audits, the Auditing Department will obtain detailed information of the operations of every officer and agency of the City. Such information may enable it to suggest economies and improved methods of operation and the Department is authorized to make recommendation towards this end. Notes 240 | Amended by approval of the voters at the election held on May 17, 2022, and certified on June 6, 2022. See Bill No. 220001 (approved February 25, 2022); Resolution No. 220009 (adopted February 24, 2022). 241 | Amended by approval of the voters at the election held on May 17, 2022, and certified on June 6, 2022. See Bill No. 220001 (approved February 25, 2022); Resolution No. 220009 (adopted February 24, 2022). 242 | Subsection (c) amended by approval of the voters at the election held on November 4, 2003 and certified on December 1, 2003. See Bill No. 020810 (approved May 15, 2003); Resolution No. 020817 (adopted May 1, 2003). Enrolled resolution designated new subsections under subsection (c) as "a)", "b)" and "c)"; renumbered as (1), (2) and (3) by Code editor.

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter § 6-401 Auditors.

§ 6-401. Auditors. The City Controller shall appoint a certified public accountant as the deputy in charge of auditing and the auditors regularly employed by the Auditing Department shall be either certified public accountants, or graduates of colleges or universities who majored in accounting. ANNOTATION Sources: No specific source. Purposes: To enable the City Controller properly to perform his auditing functions, his deputy is required to be a certified public accountant and his auditors certified public accountants or persons with appropriate academic training in accounting. This requirement puts Council on notice that appropriations to the Auditing Department must be adequate to compensate such personnel so that the Department may properly perform its functions. See Section 2-300(4). Notes 243 | Amended by approval of the voters at the election held on May 17, 2022, and certified on June 6, 2022. See Bill No. 220001 (approved February 25, 2022); Resolution No. 220009 (adopted February 24, 2022).

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter § 6-402 Justification for Requisitions for Disbursements.

§ 6-402. Justification for Requisitions for Disbursements. Whenever a requisition for disbursement of funds from the City Treasury shall be presented to the Auditing Department, the Department may require evidence that the amount stated in the requisition is justly due, and for that purpose may summon to appear before it any officer of the City or any officer or employee of any department, board or commission of the City or of any other governmental agency receiving appropriations from the City or any other person and examine the officer or employee upon oath or affirmation relative to such requisition. ANNOTATION Sources: Act of June 25, 1919, P.L. 581, Article XII, Section 3(g). Purposes: The Department is empowered to investigate the propriety of any requisition so that it may be able to perform its auditing functions. Notes 244 | Amended by approval of the voters at the election held on May 17, 2022, and certified on June 6, 2022. See Bill No. 220001 (approved February 25, 2022); Resolution No. 220009 (adopted February 24, 2022).

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter § 6-403 Consultation with Outside Experts.

§ 6-403. Consultation with Outside Experts. Whenever the City Controller deems it necessary, the Auditing Department shall consult with a firm or firms of certified public accountants in order to obtain expert advice as to the manner in which the auditing duties of the Department are being performed. ANNOTATION Sources: No specific source. Purposes: The Auditing Department is authorized to consult private certified public accountants whenever the City Controller deems it necessary so that it may obtain expert advice to aid it in the performance of its duties. This provision puts Council on notice that it must provide the Auditing Department with funds to compensate accountants engaged for this purpose by the Department. See Section 2-300(4).

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter § 6-404 Duty to Submit to Audits by Certified Public Accountants Appointed by the Council; Audit Reports.

§ 6-404. Duty to Submit to Audits by Certified Public Accountants Appointed by the Council; Audit Reports. The Auditing Department shall submit to any accountants appointed by the Council for the purpose of making an audit of its affairs or of the methods used by it in auditing the affairs of other departments and of officers, boards and commissions of the City and of other agencies receiving moneys out of the City Treasury, all records in its possession, shall cooperate fully with such accountants in making such an audit and, to the extent authorized by the Council, shall exercise all its powers to make available for such an audit the records of any officer, department, board or commission. Reports of all such audits shall be submitted to the Mayor and to the Council. ANNOTATION Sources: No specific source. Purposes: 1. The Charter requires Council to make provision for at least a triennial examination by an independent firm of certified public accountants of the manner in which the Auditing Department is performing its duties. See Section 2-300(5). The Auditing Department is required to furnish to any accountants appointed by Council for this purpose all of its records and to cooperate with such accountants. 2. Whenever the examination of the records of the Auditing Department indicates that the independent accountants ought to inspect the records of other departments or agencies, the Auditing Department is required to exercise all of its powers to aid such inspection to the extent that the Council authorizes the Auditing Department to do so. 3. An independent triennial audit of every officer and agency of the City was not required by the Charter for two reasons. It would involve great expense to the City and it would duplicate the work of the Auditing Department if that Department were properly performing its auditing functions. Independent accountants, when they examine the manner in which the Auditing Department is performing its duties, should be able to tell whether particular officers and agencies have been properly audited. If they have been so audited by the Auditing Department, the purpose of the independent examination has been met. If they have not been audited properly, the independent auditors will report that fact to the Mayor and the Council. 4. Reports of independent auditors are to be made to the Mayor and to the Council so that they will be informed of the results.

Philadelphia Home Rule Charter § 6-405 Access to Records.

§ 6-405. Access to Records. The City Controller shall have the right of access at all times to the financial records of every officer, department, board or commission of the City and any other governmental agency to which appropriations are made by the City. ANNOTATION Sources: No specific source. Purposes: The City Controller is given the right of access to the records of every officer and agency receiving appropriations from the City so that he may properly fulfill the functions of his office. _______________

Source: City of Philadelphia, The Philadelphia Code and Home Rule Charter (American Legal Publishing, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/philadelphia/latest/philadelphia_pa/0-0-0-265416Fetched: 10/27/2026