The state Auditor has given the Bellevue Convention Center Authority (Meydenbauer Center) a clean bill of health in a recent audit.
The state found that the Authority complied with state laws and regulations and its own policies and procedures in the areas it examined. Internal controls were adequate to safeguard public assets, the findings said.
The Authority is a public development authority and was created in December 1989 by the city of Bellevue under
state law to construct and operate a convention center. The facility opened for business in 1993 and is governed by a seven-member board appointed by the Bellevue city manager with the consent of the Bellevue City Council.
An executive director and three department directors oversee daily operations of the facility, which offers meeting rooms, exhibit space and a 410-seat performing arts theater. The Authority employs about 120 full- and part-time staff, and has an annual operating budget of almost $9.1 million.
The state audit did not examine every portion of the Meydenbauer Center’s financial activities during each audit. The areas examined were those representing the highest risk of noncompliance, misappropriation or misuse. Other areas are audited on a rotating basis over the course of several years.
The following areas of the Authority were examined during this audit period:
• Cash receipting
• Small and attractive assets such as
computers
• Contracts/agreements
• Open public meetings/records laws
• Procurement (bidding/prevailing wage)
• Disbursements/expenditures
• Payroll/personnel
• Conflict of interest/ethics laws
• Procurement (bidding/prevailing wage)
• Disbursements/expenditures
• Payroll/personnel
• Conflict of interest/ethics laws
In a separate audit, the state said the Authority’s financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Meydenbauer Center, as of December 31, 2007, and 2006.
