Prince William leaders today could decide to spend between $50 and $60,000 by ordering a performance audit of the county’s tourism bureau.
Occoquan District Supervisor Ruth Anderson asked for the audit on March 15. The audit comes as county budget wonks are in the trenches working to prepare the upcoming FY2017 budget due July 1.
Anderson said a 2009 agreement between the Prince William County Board of Supervisors and Discover Prince William, the county’s convention and visitors bureau, expired in 2014.
The request for the audit appeared to takes some Board of Supervisors members by surprise. Discover Prince William Director Anne Marie Maher had just wrapped up a presentation that exclaimed tourism visits and spending in Prince William County increased in recent years.
A study by the Virginia Tourism Corporation found Prince William saw a $3.1 million increase in visitor spending in 2014. For every $1 invested by the county, the return is $53, according to the study.
“I don’t know of too many investments you can make that for every dollar you invest you’re getting 53 to one back,” said Maher to the Board of Supervisors.
Discover Prince William has also managed to deliver, by Board of Supervisors directive, more sports tourism and events to Prince William County. A Little Leauge Baseball tournament is expected to draw crowds in July while the first Prince William Half Marathon will run in September.
The hotel occupancy rate is also increased as the region “recovers from a government shutdown and sequestration,” and more families within a 250 to 500-mile radius of Prince William travel to the region to learn about the military, civil war history, and attend group events, said Maher.
New additions to the National Museum for the Marine Corps and planned events at Prince William Forest Park celebrating the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service are expected bring more visitors to the region.
A performance audit of the agency would be outsourced, but its request also comes when county budget officials are working to implement a new system-wide computer software, as well as prepare the next year’s operating budget.
“My concern with staff is a resource one with regard to the budget and the new financial system…” said Acting Prince William County Executive Christopher Martino. “If there’s an urgency to have this done int he next 30, 60, 90 days, I don’t see that we can pull this off.”
Supervisors Maureen Caddigan and John Jenkins suggested holding off on performing the audit.
“We have a schedule of the audits we need to have have done, I want to make sure we don’t bump another audit for one that we don’t know anything about,” said Jenkins, who sits on the Board’s audit committee.
