Co-Responder Expansion Grant and Contract Compliance Follow-up

Photo: A Denver Police car parked on the 16th Street Mall.

The Denver Police Department and Department of Public Safety fully implemented 10 recommendations made in the original audit report. However, the departments only partially implemented five others and have not taken steps to address the risks 10 other recommendations had sought to resolve.

By using the city’s financial system of record to manage the grant and following the city’s records retention policy, both departments are better equipped to maintain records and supporting documentation for the grant and contract. Furthermore, completing and retaining the sole-source justification increases transparency around the departments’ decision to contract with WellPower. And in finalizing a data-sharing agreement between the city and WellPower, both agencies understand what data can and should be provided related to the Co-Responder Expansion Program.

Graphic showing 10 fully implemented recommendations, five partial, nine not implemented, and one did not agree to implement.

Remaining Risks

The recommendations the police department and the Department of Public Safety did not fully implement — including the one recommendation it did not agree to implement — present several lingering risks. Among them:

  • The departments do not have sufficient documentation — including thoroughly developed succession plans or contract and grant-monitoring policies and procedures — to guide staff in monitoring both agreements and ensure compliance and knowledge is not lost when staff leave. Without these, the departments risk not complying with both the grant and contract and potential future funding for the program.
  • While the department appropriately reimbursed the 2020 grant for unallowable travel expenses, their updated process was not effective in preventing the same mistake for the 2022 grant.
  • The departments are still not closing the program grants on time in Workday, the city’s financial system of record, which means the grant continues to accrue interest. This interest must be paid to the Caring for Denver Foundation along with unspent funds and prevents the departments from submitting annual reports outlining final expenditures on time.

Auditor's Letter

September 5, 2024

In keeping with generally accepted government auditing standards and Auditor’s Office policy, as authorized by city ordinance, we have a responsibility to monitor and follow up on audit recommendations to ensure city agencies address audit findings through appropriate corrective action and to aid us in planning future audits.

In September 2022, we audited Caring for Denver’s Co-Responder Expansion grant and the associated contract managed by the Denver Police Department and Department of Public Safety and found risks involving oversight, succession planning, policies and procedures, and allowable expenses. The departments agreed to implement 24 of our 25 recommendations.

We recently followed up and found the departments fully implemented 10 recommendations and partially implemented another five. Nine recommendations were not implemented.

Although the Police Department and Public Safety have made notable progress, they did not fully address all the risks associated with our original findings. Consequently, we may revisit these risk areas in future audits to ensure the city takes appropriate corrective action.

We did not update the status of the one recommendation the departments did not agree to implement, as we presume they took no action toward implementing that. We include the recommendation in this report as a reference.

We appreciate the leaders and team members at the Police Department and Department of Public Safety who shared their time and knowledge with us throughout the audit and the follow-up process. Please contact me at 720-913-5000 with any questions.

Denver Auditor's Office

Auditor's Signature
Timothy O'Brien, CPA

Timothy O'Brien Official Headshot

AUDITOR TIMOTHY O'BRIEN, CPA
Denver Auditor

Denver Auditor's Office

201 W. Colfax Ave. #705 Denver, CO 80202
Email: auditor@denvergov.org
Call: 720-913-5000
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