Secondary Follow-up: Audit of Salt Lake County Council Tax Administration Payroll

AUDITOR'S LETTER

June 18, 2026

This is the final follow-up report for the Audit of Salt Lake County Council Tax Administration Payroll, originally issued in January 2024, and it concludes the audit cycle for all 11 recommendations.

That original audit identified six findings with 11 recommendations. The preliminary follow-up report, issued in June 2025, verified that Council Tax Administration management had implemented six recommendations, with five remaining in progress.

This secondary follow-up evaluated the five remaining recommendations. The audit period covered October 15, 2025, through April 15, 2026, with testing of Council Tax policies extended through May 30, 2026. Of the five outstanding recommendations, two were implemented, one was closed, and two were not implemented.

Management fully implemented two recommendations, addressing procedures for timecard approvals when supervisors are unavailable and segregation of duties over overtime compensation agreements.

One recommendation related to documentation supporting retroactive payments was closed. Because no retroactive payments occurred during either follow-up audit period, the risk could not be evaluated and additional follow-up is not planned. Management should ensure that documentation of calculations for any future retroactive payments is retained on file.

Two recommendations related to timely access termination were not implemented. Our preliminary follow-up in June 2025 flagged the same issue; that Council Tax Administration's offboarding policy did not meet the standard set by Human Resources Policy 02-400, which requires system access to be revoked no later than an employee's last day worked. A year later, that gap has not been closed. In June 2026, Council Tax management informed us that they had reached out to Human Resources regarding Policy 02-400 related to the processing of temporary employee terminations.

The final count of the original 11 recommendations: eight are fully implemented, one is closed, and two are not implemented. No recommendations remain in progress.

As authorized by Utah Code Title 17, Chapter 69, and in accordance with Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS), this office monitors corrective action on audit recommendations to support continuous improvement across County agencies. We believe the evidence obtained provides a sufficient basis for our conclusions, and we extend our appreciation to Council Tax Administration management for their cooperation throughout this process. Should you have any questions, please contact me at 385-468-7200.

Chris Harding, CPA, CFE, CIA
Salt Lake County Auditor