Pines sticks with current firm

Commissioners reject committee’s recommendation on auditing firm

Pembroke Pines commissioners recently rejected the auditing firm recommended by an evaluation committee, preferring instead to rehire the company that most recently audited the city.

In a unanimous vote, commissioners voted to stick with GLSC & Company rather than hiring BCA Watson Rice.

“It’s interesting how each of us has found a different problem with the number one ranked firm,” Commissioner Carl Shechter said.

An audit evaluation committee was tasked with reviewing and ranking proposals from nine auditing firms. The firms were given scores based on their proposed price, whether they qualified for local vendor preference and their staffing and auditing approach.

The final tally ranked BCA in first place and GLSC, whose fiveyear contract with the city expired in March, in second.

While two committee members gave GLSC a top score of 1, the third member gave it an 8, dropping it into second place and prompting Shechter to call the process “skewed.”

Vice Mayor Iris Siple said she was uncomfortable with the committee’s selection.

“There was too much of a differential in the scoring, and that shouldn’t happen,” she said. “There is no way I would vote to approve this the way it is.”

No representatives from the auditing firms were at the commission meeting.

City Attorney Sam Goren said commissioners can only override the committee’s top selection if they have “clear cut” reasons for choosing a different firm.

Commissioner Jay Schwartz questioned the local vendor preference given to BCA, which applied for the contract using an address on Broward Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. The preference is given to companies in Broward County.

Schwartz said more than 40

other businesses use the same address and called it a “virtual office.” BCA shows a Miami address on its website.

Schwartz also questioned how BCA could propose auditing the city and its charter school system in 1,000 hours when GLSC spent at least 1,300 annually conducting the same audits.

“I’m seeing a 30 percent swing of sorts and that impacts price,” he said.

BCA’s proposal was the cheapest option at $100,000 annually, while GLSC’s price was $118,000, the third-lowest amount.

Commissioner Angelo Castillo was concerned about the timing of chang- ing auditors when the city has a new finance director, is constructing the City Center and is in the final stages of its bonds.

“I feel that at this time, it is in the best interest of the city to keep continuity,” he said. “One has more experience with the city of Pembroke Pines, and that’s the one I want.”