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Editor's note—Section 29A-4, establishing the Office of Legislative Oversight and providing for its director, derived from 1976 L.M.C., ch. 18, § 1, and 1985 L.M.C., ch. 3, § 1, was repealed by 1986 L.M.C., ch. 37, § 4. See now § 1A-203(b) and § 1A-204(b)(2)a.
(a) General responsibilities.
(1) The Office shall serve as a principal means through which the county council exercises its legislative oversight functions.
(2) The overall responsibility of the Office shall be to determine the effectiveness of funding and legislation approved and enacted by the council in meeting community needs. Emphasis shall be on the relationship between benefits derived from services performed and the public costs involved in providing those services.
(3) The Office shall provide the council with information, analyses and recommendations concerning the management and operations of public and private agencies and instrumentalities for which funds are appropriated or approved by the council or which directly or indirectly use funds appropriated or approved by the council.
(b) Powers and duties. In addition to any other power, duty, or responsibility provided in this Chapter, the Office has the following powers and duties:
(1) Review and evaluate financial controls and accountability, efficiency of management and utilization of resources, internal controls, and effectiveness of program results of the various departments, agencies and entities using funds appropriated or approved by the county council.
(2) Report on conditions found, identify weaknesses, and suggest ways and means for improvement of financial and operating management, including prescribed principles and standards of accountability and internal controls.
(3) Evaluate new legislative proposals and requests for appropriations in terms of availability and effectiveness of existing resources to meet the needs and to fulfil the purposes of the new proposals.
(4) Conduct special audits, surveys and investigations at the request of the county council.
(5) Conduct special program or budget analyses on selected operational units, programs, functions, and activities.
(6) Structure the review and evaluation program of the Office so as to avoid duplication of effort and to make maximum use of all available resources.
(7) Allocate resources to those areas known or considered to be of direct interest to the county council in accordance with the work program approved by the council for the office.
(8) Report to the county council and to the general public its findings and recommendations in the manner provided in section 29A-9 of this chapter.
(9) Administer contracts with the certified public accountant employed by the council to conduct the annual audit of county transactions pursuant to the county charter.
(10) Develop uniform review and evaluation procedures, guidelines and regulations for the conduct and explanation of audits, surveys and investigations under this chapter. Regulations that may be issued pursuant to this chapter shall be adopted under method (2) of section 2A-15 of this Code.
(11) Employ consultants and technical advisors as might be necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter in accordance with funds appropriated by the county council.
(12) Review all post audit reports by certified public accountants hired by other public county and bi-county agencies and request comments from agency directors on the certified public accountant's findings.
(13) Review all executive branch internal audit and program evaluation reports and request comments from agency directors.
(14) Report to the county council on contract administration and performance, using a random sample of county contracts. (1976 L.M.C., ch. 18, § 1; 1984 L.M.C., ch. 24, § 33; 1985 L.M.C., ch. 3, § 1; 1992 L.M.C., ch. 16, § 1.)
(a) The Office shall prepare an annual work program, which shall be submitted to the county council for approval or modification.
(b) The work program recommended by the Office shall allocate available resources based on:
(1) Statutory requirements.
(2) Council requests and indication of council interest.
(3) Potential areas of improvement in management and financial controls and operations.
(4) Areas which have been identified as involving weaknesses in management and financial controls and operations.
(5) Programs with large expenditures, assets or revenues.
(6) Operational units, programs, functions, and activities identified by the Council as requiring special program or budget analyses and review. (1976 L.M.C., ch. 18, § 1; 1992 L.M.C., ch. 16, § 1.)
(a) The Office of Legislative Oversight shall have access to, and the right to examine, any pertinent books, documents, papers or records of any department, agency or instrumentality or any contractor with the county or its instrumentalities necessary to carry out the responsibilities assigned hereunder.
(b) Included within the scope of this section shall be such information as is necessary to determine powers, duties, activities, organization, financial transactions and methods of operation, management and accountability.
(c) No employee of the county government or any instrumentality of the county and no employee of any contractor with the county or any of its instrumentalities shall be retaliated against or penalized, or threatened with retaliation or penalty, for providing information to, cooperating with, or in any way assisting the Office of Legislative Oversight in connection with any activity of that Office carried out pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. (1976 L.M.C., ch. 18, § 1.)
Upon request by the director, and pursuant to the authority contained in chapter 2, section 2-20 of this Code, the county council may issue subpoenas for witnesses, and the presiding member of the council may administer the oath or affirmation to any witness who may be examined before the council or a council committee in connection with any investigation, inquiry or survey authority pursuant to this chapter. (1976 L.M.C., ch. 18, § 1.)
(a) The report by the Office of each audit, survey or investigation conducted pursuant to this chapter shall be submitted in writing to the county council. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this section, all reports shall be made available by the council to:
(1) The general public; and
(2) The director of any agency or department that is the subject of a report. Thirty (30) days after receipt, the agency or department director shall give the county written comments on the report findings. The agency or department director shall also give the county council status reports on actions taken to resolve the problems indicated in the report findings. The status reports shall be given every six (6) months, from the date of the director's comments, until all problems are resolved.
(b) Within 15 days after receiving a written report from the Office, the Council must determine whether the report, or any part of the report, must not be made public. The only basis on which a report, or any part of a report, must not be made public is if the report or part contains information that would not be available for public inspection under Subtitle 6, Title 10 of the State Government Article of the Maryland Code.
(c) If a report, or any part of a report, is not made public by the council, the Office shall promptly release to the public a general summary of the report or part together with the reasons why the report or part was not made public. (1976 L.M.C., ch. 18, § 1; 1985 L.M.C., ch. 3, § 1; 2010 L.M.C., ch. 49, § 1.)
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