The years since amalgamation have been ex-tremely hectic. Requests for the assistance of the City Auditor have been almost overwhelming. In order to meet these demands something had to give. What gave for us was first, like many of our clients, properly documenting policies and proce-dures. The second thing to give during this high volume production period was the quality of our file documentation. This all happened at the same time that we had made a commitment to our newly formed Audit Committee to have a peer review after three years of operation. What were we thinking?

Time flies when you’re having fun. Our three years are almost up and we’re so busy fighting fires that we have yet to advance our policies and proce-dures to where they need to be and our file docu-mentation still needs improvement. That is what gave me sleepless nights until I acted on the advice of previous columnists in the Local Govern-ment Auditing Quarterly and volunteered as a member of a peer review team. And boy, did I luck out. I was teamed with two esteemed members of the ALGA executive, Joe Harris and el supremo himself, Alan Ash.

One of the more significant things I learned, (second only to how many danishes and donuts three peer reviewers can consume), was that the first time an office has a peer review, there may be grounds for limiting the review period to the most recent year or two. Such reasons include the appointment of a new head for the function or the implementation of new policies and procedures aimed at compliance with Yellow Book standards. Whew! For me, since we are implementing new policies and procedures, that means we don’t have to go back and fix all the files from years past that we rushed through just to get the job done. Breathing a little more easily already?

But what about those policies and procedures? They must still be formulated and followed for the period subject to peer review. But again, partici-pating in the peer review provided some valuable information. First, as a reviewer you become familiar with the policies and procedures of the office being reviewed. If the office passes the peer review, you know the policies are acceptable and with the permission of that office, you’ve got a great starting point for your own policies. Second, I learned that several offices have posted their policies and procedures on their web sites. As a bonus, many of these same offices have had a successful peer review. Bingo, talk about a flying start.

One final concern you might have is the content of the resulting peer review report. Again, rest easy. From the experience I had I can tell you that the reviewers will treat you with the same courtesy and professionalism they have for their regular audit clients. This includes a full and frank discussion of the results in draft to ensure the final product is accurate and appropriate.

Still worried? Go back to the last few issues of the Quarterly and re-read the Peer Review Corner articles. Get in touch with Doug Norman, the Peer Review Committee Chair. Visit the websites of some ALGA members who have posted their peer review results for the public to view, (try Gainesville or San Jose). And finally, and most importantly, volunteer to serve on a peer review team. Peer reviews are still few and far between so volunteer well in advance of when you antici-pate having your own peer review done. One last thing, get lots of exercise before you embark on the peer review. Peer reviewers can make a lot of donuts vanish.