Gallagher: Loose cash control at Denver City Hall being fixed

In March, Denver Auditor Dennis Gallagher published an audit that flew quietly under the radar until reported this week. It found, among other things, that a number of city agencies were being careless with their petty cash.

One unnamed agency even left $600,000 sitting under a desk, in an unlocked box. Another routinely accepted cash drawers with incorrect balances, and permitted the employees to repay the shorted amount "over time." Other agencies lacked properly placed security cameras.

But on Tuesday, Gallagher said that all of the problems outlined in his audit are being quickly fixed.

"All of our recommendations are being implemented in a timely fashion. Many have already been addressed," Gallagher said in an email.

In particular, he said that the office that left $600,000 vulnerable to theft - the auditor's office won't identify the agency involved - had corrected itself "immediately."

City Council members on Monday described the situation as "alarming" and "crazy," and on Tuesday, councilwoman Jeanne Faatz, said she had been deeply worried when she'd first heard about the audit.

"If people are not following the rules, you just don't know if there's chicanery going on there or not," said Faatz, who chairs the council's finance committee.

Faatz said that after meeting with Gallagher, she's convinced the problems his office revealed are being taken care of. In response to the audit, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper's office accepted all of Gallagher's recommendations, and steps have been taken to implement them.

"The most important thing to me was the reaction of the administration," said Faatz. "When (Gallagher) tells me there's a problem, that gets my attention. And when the administration tells me they're taking steps, that gets my attention, too."

Said Gallagher in his email, "The fact is, this audit is an example of how the process is supposed to work. Denver has an independent auditor so that... the citizenry can be assured that nothing is being covered up. We calls 'em as we sees 'em."