Los Banos Mayor Michael Amabile is taking a step forward to fulfill his campaign promise to have an audit done of the city’s finances.
The city released a Request For Proposals (RFP) for professional auditing services and a press release on April 18.
In the press release, Mayor Michael Amabile said, “This audit fulfills a campaign promise I made to the residents of Los Banos.”
“Our community deserves a full and honest accounting of how public funds have been managed. This process will help ensure we learn from the past while setting a stronger standard for the future,” he continued.
Some of the details in the RFP focus on ‘Capital Projects’ that occurred between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2024. Accounting firms have until May 20 at 3 p.m. to send in their proposals, with the awarding of the contract planned for the June 18 city council meeting.
The goals, as laid out by the RFP, are to review records, find anomalies, evaluate internal controls and present findings. Findings by the audit are to be completed and delivered by the end of the year. Findings, as stated in the press release, will be made public.
Amabile also stated in the press release, “As we move forward, we remain respectful of those who came before us. The intention of this audit is not to cast blame, but to shine a light on the facts and better understand what changes, if any, are necessary to safeguard the public trust.”
Minnie Moreno, the city’s newly hired Finance Director, will serve as the liaison with the chosen audit company.
The previous director during the years being audited was interim finance director Brent Kuhn. In a phone call with The Westside Express, Mayor Amabile confirmed that Brent Kuhn remains with the city as a financial consultant.
After two years of being interim and acting finance director, his duties will be fully transferred to Moreno after this year’s budget. Following the budget he will continue to occasionally consult the city under his same hourly contract, just with fewer hours, Amabile said.
Kuhn was initially replaced by Vanessa Portillo, who was hired in May 2024, and submitted her initial resignation on Sept. 18, as previously reported by The Express.
