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AuditsOPSOPublic Letters

PUBLIC LETTER – POTENTIAL OPSO USE OF BRASS ERP SYSTEM

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) is authorized to comment on rules, regulations, policies, procedures, and transactions for the purpose of preventing fraud, waste, and abuse, or promoting efficient and effective government. This letter addresses the potential benefits of the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office (OPSO) using the City’s existing Budget, Requisition, and Accounting Services System (BRASS) as its Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system to replace its current, outdated ERP system.

OPSO is charged with providing for the care, custody, control and rehabilitation of inmates, as well as providing the highest level of service and security to the court systems, the execution of court mandates, and the protection of individuals’ rights and freedoms. OPSO receives significant funding from the City. As shown in Figure 1, the City provided $112 million, or approximately 73%, of OPSO’s total operating revenue over the past two budget cycles. The City appropriated $56 million of OPSO’s $76 million budgeted revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022 and $56 million of OPSO’s $77 million budgeted revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023.2

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EvaluationsPublic LettersSafety & Permits

Public Letter-Plaza Tower and Enforcement of the Minimum Property Maintenance Code

The OIG is authorized to comment on rules, regulations, policies, and transactions for the purpose of preventing fraud, waste, and abuse in order to promote effective and efficient government. As detailed in the Plaza Tower and Enforcement of the Minimum Property Maintenance Code letter released today, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) examined the Division of Code Enforcement’s efforts to mitigate the safety hazards posed by the condition of the privately-owned property located at 1001 Howard Avenue, commonly known as the Plaza Tower. The OIG did not review the City’s response to blight in general.

The OIG found that the City has not effectively used the power granted to it in the Minimum Property Maintenance Code (Code) to hold the owners of the Plaza Tower accountable for the conditions of the property. Despite the building’s obvious state of disrepair, there were no fines issued by the Division of Code Enforcement and no administrative hearings to address the conditions of the property between 2015 and 2021, when a piece of debris fell and injured a bicyclist. Instead, the City has hesitated to fine the owners of the Plaza Tower, citing the economic value of the property and the effect the fines may have on a potential sale.

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EvaluationsNOPDPublic Letters

Public Letter-NOPD Staffing, Recruitment, and Retention

The OIG examined trends in the New Orleans Police Department’s (NOPD) staffing levels, as well as the efforts the Department and other stakeholders have undertaken to improve recruitment and retention. The purpose of this review was to determine whether the NOPD’s current initiatives are effectively designed and consistent with best practices for recruitment and retention. The OIG is authorized to comment on rules, regulations, policies, and transactions for the purpose of preventing fraud, waste, and abuse in order to promote effective and efficient government.

The number of NOPD officers has decreased significantly over the last few years, to a level that raises concerns for public safety.
Due to the large number of officers separating from the NOPD, Louisiana’s Municipal Police Employees’ Retirement System (MPERS), the pension plan for police officers across the state, requires the City of New Orleans to pay $50,314.10 per month for up to 15 years, increasing to $214,112.67 per month in July 2024. If the NOPD fails to improve its staffing levels, these fines could cost the City more than $38 million over the next 15 years.

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Download The NOPD Response to the Letter
Homestead ExemptionPublic LettersTaxes

Press Release – $187,000 IN ADDITIONAL PROPERTY TAX REVENUE OWED TO THE CITY

For the first and second quarters of 2022, the City of New Orleans Bureau of Treasury has issued 26 Revised Real Estate Tax Bills concerning residential properties that the OIG identified as having benefited from homestead exemptions and a senior freeze reduction, despite the listed homeowners reportedly being deceased. The Assessor’s Office has also removed the homestead exemptions and senior freeze reductions for these properties. According to the Bureau of Treasury, the City of New Orleans is due more than $187,000 in additional property tax revenue from these 26 properties.

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AuditsPublic Letters

City Council Letter Regarding – Upper Pontalba Apartment

On March 16, 2023, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a letter concerning the Mayor’s use of a second-floor apartment unit (Mayor’s Apartment) in the Upper Pontalba Building, which is owned by the City of New Orleans (City). The letter asserted that because the French Market Corporation (FMC) does not collect fair market value rent from the current usage of the Mayor’s Apartment, this arrangement, in the case of personal use by the Mayor, gives the appearance of a donation of public property in possible violation of the Louisiana Constitution. Additionally, the Mayor’s personal use of the apartment is a possible grant of compensation in addition to the salary of the Mayor authorized by City Code and for which the City may not be making the required payroll deductions.

In light of recent events regarding possible overnight stays at the Mayor’s Apartment, the OIG requests that the City Council re-examine the ordinance passed in April 2023. As written, the ordinance does not appear to ensure that the City receives fair market value from the usage of the Mayor’s Apartment. Additionally, the ordinance lacks an enforceable definition of what qualifies as an “overnight stay”.

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AuditsNOPDPublic Letters

Tires and Rims Purchased for NOPD Vehicles

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) is authorized to comment on rules, regulations, policies, procedures, and transactions for the purpose of preventing fraud, waste, and abuse, or promoting efficient and effective government. This letter concerns the City’s use of public funds to purchase specialized tires and rims, which totaled $42,270, to replace the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) tires and rims included on new police package vehicles assigned to New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) Commanders.

The purchase was in possible violation of City procurement policy, as well as Louisiana Public Bid Law because it did not comply with the State contract that was used.

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FMCMayorPublic Letters

Use of Upper Pontalba Apartment

The OIG recommends that the City relinquish the apartment to the French Market Corporation to rent to the public. This would ensure that the City receives a benefit equivalent to the fair market value from this high demand property. The OIG is an independent agency and will continue to facilitate the efficient and effective utilization of the City’s limited resources as we identify and mitigate risks facing the City.

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Public LettersS&WB

SWBNO Delinquent Accounts and Collection Efforts

The SWBNO is currently considering a rate increase between 3% – 6% for its customers to facilitate the cost of long-deferred capital projects. In the interest of fiscal responsibility to the public, the OIG recommends a delay in any rate increase until the SWBNO makes every effort to collect monies validly owed for prior services rendered to its customers. The SWBNO should also utilize the tools currently at its disposal, and those in development, to increase bill accuracy prior to pursuing a rate increase. The OIG is an independent agency and will continue to facilitate the efficient and effective utilization of the City’s limited resources as we identify and mitigate risks facing the City.

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InvestigationsPublic LettersSafety & Permits

Letter to Director of Safety & Permits – Third-Party Inspectors

The City of New Orleans Office of Inspector General (OIG) believes that the following Third-Party Inspectors, registered with Safety and Permits, are currently in violation of Section 110.10(1) of the Building Code because they appear to have current and active commercial and residential contractor’s licenses issued by the State as described below:

  • Randy Farrell Sr, Commercial License Certificate number (CL.) 61365; Residential License Certificate number (RL.) 885794 doing business as (dba) Global Technical Solutions
  • Christopher Marino Jr., CL. 10337; RL. 81638, dba Roman Builders Inc.
  • Hoang Trong Do, CL. 75203; RL. 888862 (Pending) dba AMM Contractor LLC
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ERBPublic Letters

Inspector General Response to ERB QAC report – 2020

Pursuant to the applicable ordinances, the City of New Orleans Office of Inspector General (OIG) submits our formal response to the May 11, 2020, Report of the Quality Assurance Review Committee’s (QARAC) to the Ethics Review Board (ERB).

As set forth in detail below, even though the 2020 Report was timely filed, the QARAC’s findings and conclusions inexplicably failed to reflect the application of any accepted professional standards for conducting an evidence-based analysis, including but not limited to, conducting any written or verbal interviews or discussion with the Inspector General or any member of our staff.

We believe that despite the generally positive tone of the report, discussions with OIG executive management and/or staff during the review period would have provided clarification and/or additional perspective which would have resulted in a more substantive and useful Report.

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