City audit links youth baseball funding to better record keeping
A “record-keeping problem” will need to be addressed if the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation wants new funds to pay for youth baseball umpires in the upcoming 2020 season, according to the city controller upon releasing an audit Tuesday.
The special review examined the department’s 2019 Citisports Baseball League imprest fund and more specifically the city funds issued to a private organization called the Pittsburgh Sports Officials that scheduled and paid umpires for Super Colt, Colt, Pony AA and Pony A games.
Seven checks totaling $30,353 for the 2019 season were issued to the organization — the head of which is both a referee and the person who schedules officials — and deposited into a comingled Citizen’s Bank account, according to the controller’s office.
The organization scheduled 47 umpires throughout the season and paid between $55 and $75 per game, according to the controller’s office.
“At the end of the day, we’re not talking about huge chunks of money when you look at the budget as a whole, but it is public money that we have to account for,” Controller Michael Lamb said.
Roughly $1,000 remained in the account “with no plans for disbursement,” according to the audit. Furthermore, the city had no formal contract with the organization.
“We don’t believe it’s a theft, but we don’t know that for sure. So what we’ve said to the parks department, and what we’re going to hold them to, is you’ve got to clean this up before we replenish or allow any more money into that imprest fund,” Mr. Lamb said.
In its response to the audit, the Department of Parks and Recreation agreed to the all of the report’s recommendations.
Prior to the 2019 youth baseball season, the department had paid individual umpire invoices. That practice continues with officials hired for other city youth sports, including basketball, softball and others, according to the controller’s office.