Report 2018-110 Recommendation 16 Responses

Report 2018-110: City of Lincoln: Financial Mismanagement, Insufficient Accountability, and Lax Oversight Threaten the City's Stability (Release Date: March 2019)

Recommendation #16 To: Lincoln, City of

To ensure transparency in providing accurate fee information to the public, Lincoln should immediately update and publicly disclose its master fee schedule to reflect the fees that it actually charges. In addition, Lincoln should periodically review its fee schedule to identify outdated fees that do not accurately reflect the cost of providing services. It should revise those fees to incorporate the costs commensurate with those services and update its master fee schedule accordingly.

1-Year Agency Response

The Master Fee schedule was adopted in January 2020, and the new fees went into effect in February 2020.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Fully Implemented

In addition to updating and disclosing its master fee schedule, Lincoln previously provided a timeline in its six-month response stating that it would update this fee schedule annually to reflect current costs and every five years to reestablish fees.

6-Month Agency Response

The comprehensive update of the Master Fee Schedule is in progress. Draft results will be presented to the City Council at the October 8, 2019 City Council Meeting. The website has been updated to reflect any fees being charged that were inconsistent with the Master Fee Schedule.

Full compliance cannot be substantiated until the Adoption of the updated Master Fee Schedule.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The City is currently undergoing a complete update of the Master Fee Schedule and Cost Allocation Plan. It is anticipated that the study will be completed and a new fee schedule will be proposed to City Council for consideration in August 2019.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

All Recommendations in 2018-110

Agency responses received are posted verbatim.