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Auditor Logo Tom Schweich

Report No. 2011-114
December 2011

Complete Report
Findings in the audit of the Jackson County Sports Complex Authority


Background
The Jackson County Sports Complex Authority (Authority) is a body corporate and politic and a political subdivision of the state of Missouri. The Authority was created by statute to oversee the construction of the Harry S. Truman Sports Complex, a dual stadium complex for football and baseball. The Authority is party to 25-year lease agreements with the Kansas City Royals and the Kansas City Chiefs signed in 2006, when renovations to the complex were started. These amended leases shifted the primary responsibility for long-term maintenance of the stadiums to the teams and require the teams pay rent to the Authority. The Authority pays management fees to the teams under a management contract to compensate the teams for the cost of utilities and managing the daily operations of the stadiums. The Authority is governed by a five-member board of commissioners, each of whom is recommended by the Jackson County legislature and appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Authority employs an executive director and office manager.

Closed Meetings
On several occasions, the Authority said it was closing a meeting to discuss one topic, but then discussed other topics, some of which were not allowable under the Sunshine Law.

Insurance Coverage
The Chiefs and Royals are contractually required to maintain liability insurance on the respective stadiums, and Jackson County fulfills the Authority's duty to maintain casualty insurance, but the Authority did not request proof of insurance from any of these parties to confirm that adequate coverage is in place.

Expenditures
The Authority did not maintain adequate supporting documentation for some expenditures. The Authority purchased a chartered flight for $6,500, but the voucher does not indicate who was on the flight or the purpose for the flight. In addition, the Executive Director's expense reports did not always document the purpose of the expenses. The Authority does not always competitively bid professional services, such as legislative, accounting and audit, and legal services, as is required by Section 64.940.3, RSMo.

Tickets and Suite Usage
The Authority does not adequately document who uses its tickets for the Royals home baseball games or its suite at the Chiefs home football games, making it difficult to ensure the cost of providing food, beverages and tickets to state and local public officials is reported to the Missouri Ethics Commission. Between January 2008 and December 2010, the Authority's lobbyist reported only $1,857 in expenditures provided to public officials at Chiefs games and reported no expenditures for use of Royals tickets by public officials.

Board Supervision
The Authority's Board of Commissioners should improve its oversight of the Authority's activities. The Board does not usually request supporting documentation for expenditures, and there is no documentation that the Board provides any other type of supervision over the activities of the Executive Director.

In the areas audited, the overall performance of this entity was Good.*

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act 2009 (Federal Stimulus)
The Jackson County Sports Complex Authority did not receive any federal stimulus monies during the audited time period.

*The rating(s) cover only audited areas and do not reflect an opinion on the overall operation of the entity. Within that context, the rating scale indicates the following:

Excellent:
The audit results indicate this entity is very well managed. The report contains no findings. In addition, if applicable, prior recommendations have been implemented.

Good:
The audit results indicate this entity is well managed. The report contains few findings, and the entity has indicated most or all recommendations have already been, or will be, implemented. In addition, if applicable, many of the prior recommendations have been implemented.

Fair:
The audit results indicate this entity needs to improve operations in several areas. The report contains several findings, or one or more findings that require management's immediate attention, and/or the entity has indicated several recommendations will not be implemented. In addition, if applicable, several prior recommendations have not been implemented.

Poor:
The audit results indicate this entity needs to significantly improve operations. The report contains numerous findings that require management's immediate attention, and/or the entity has indicated most recommendations will not be implemented. In addition, if applicable, most prior recommendations have not been implemented.

Complete Audit Report
Missouri State Auditor's Office
moaudit@auditor.mo.gov