Under the chairmanship of Werner Sedlak, Director of the Vienna City Audit Office, the 138th meeting of the Technical Committee for Audit Office Matters of the Austrian Association of Cities took place in Villach on October 16th and 17th, 2024, which focused on the specialist topic “Funding and subsidies – management audit in the area of tension between the will to control and the dictates of empty coffers”.
The welcome was given by Arnold Muschet, regional manager of the Austrian Association of Cities in Carinthia.
Referring to the general topic and in the direction of the representatives of Austrian control institutions, Muschet explained: “The focus of external financial control is always transparency, advice and control. In this context, it is important that optimization potential is recognized and that a positive error culture is derived from this, especially since citizens have the right to know what the financial resources are being used for.”
After introductory words on the topic of the conference and a short review of “75 years of the Villach City Audit Office” by the host, Hannes Liposchek, Director of the Villach City Audit Office, the content was kicked off by Günter Bauer, Director of the Carinthian State Audit Office, who in his statement addressed the “ Funding audit at the Carinthian State Audit Office”.
The event was continued by Hannes Hartleb and Gabriel Demir, both auditors at the Vienna City Audit Office, who approached the topic from a practical perspective in their presentation “The City of Vienna’s Funding Handbook: Insight into Vienna’s subsidy practice and its audits”.
Michael Prodnik and Cornelia Eder, both employees in the Department for Information and Communication Technologies of the City of Villach, gave an exciting insight into the “Funding System of the City of Villach”.
Funding processing – artificial intelligence – reform of the Vienna control institution
The second day was also dedicated to exam-related topics and the exchange of experiences between the Austrian control institutions. For example, Harald Szeidl, head of the public companies and energy industry department at the Court of Auditors, offered insight into the “COFAG funding processing”, while the director of the Upper Austrian State Audit Office, Rudolf Hoscher, discussed how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used in everyday auditing using the “Project Phoenix”.
Werner Sedlak dedicated himself to the complex topic of “Reform of the Vienna City Audit Office – organ position and competencies” and gave an insight and outlook into auditing work under the new legal framework.
Guided tour of Landskron Castle – winner of the ORF program “9 Places, 9 Treasures”
The conference organized by Hannes Liposchek and the team from the Villach City Audit Office was rounded off with a visit to Landskron Castle, one of the most impressive castle complexes in Austria, located between Lake Ossiacher and the district town of Villach; In 2023, winner of the ORF program “9 Places, 9 Treasures”. Knights have long since left the walls, and since then it has been conquered by birds and monkeys, some of which are threatened with extinction, which is where the name “Affenberg” comes from, which is also Austria’s largest outdoor monkey enclosure with around 186 Japanese macaques.
Further information:
o Lectures from the technical committee available online at:
www.staedtebund.gv.at/ausschuesse/kontrollamtsangelegenheiten/tagungen
o Information about the Vienna City Audit Office: www.stadtrechnungshof.wien.at
(End) fre