The Office of the City Auditor operates from Room 806 of Richmond’s City Hall, fielding requests from an unlikely coalition: City Council members, the Mayor, department heads, city employees, and ordinary citizens who want answers about how their government spends money.
The audit process itself follows a deliberate sequence designed to balance thoroughness with the practical constraints of staffing and time. When the auditor’s management team selects an area for review, the first step is an entrance conference with the relevant department director. This initial meeting serves a dual purpose—the auditor outlines objectives while the department head identifies areas of particular concern within their own operation.
What happens next reveals something about the nature of government oversight in a mid-sized city. If staff time permits, the auditor incorporates the department’s own concerns into the review. If not, those areas get scheduled for later examination—a pragmatic acknowledgment that comprehensive oversight requires resources the office may not always have available.
The planning phase involves what auditors call benchmarking: comparing Richmond’s practices against those of similar entities elsewhere. Staff interviews probe both written procedures and the unwritten customs that often govern how work actually gets done in any organization. From this foundation, auditors conduct a risk analysis to determine which elements of a program warrant the closest examination.
During fieldwork, auditors frequently rely on departmental staff to retrieve documentation from files and computer systems. The office emphasizes evaluating internal controls—the procedures management has put in place to meet its own objectives. Secondary priorities include identifying opportunities for greater efficiency and assessing compliance with applicable laws.
The process concludes with a report built around findings and recommendations. While the complete audit cycle can take considerable time, the office maintains that it works to accommodate departmental schedules and workloads.
For Richmond residents interested in requesting an audit of a particular city function, the office accepts inquiries by phone at 804-646-5616 or by email at askcityauditor@richmondgov.com. Whether such requests ultimately result in formal audits depends on the management team’s assessment and available resources—but the door, at least officially, remains open.
- Audit requests can come from City Council, the Mayor, department heads, employees, and citizens
- The office is located at 900 E. Broad St., Room 806 in Richmond City Hall
- Auditors benchmark Richmond’s practices against other comparable entities
Public records reporting · April 15, 2026