Office of the Comptroller
The Baltimore City Comptroller’s Office supervises five municipal departments:
- Accounts Payable is responsible for all payments and disbursements made by the City with the exception of payroll and debt management.
- Through its Department of Audits, the Comptroller’s office provides regular financial and performance audits of City agencies and City government as a whole.
- By charter, the Comptroller’s office includes the Department of Real Estate, which manages all of the City’s real estate holdings.
- The Comptroller supervises the City’s Department of Telecommunications and provides telephone services to all city agencies.
- The Municipal Post Office is responsible for handling the city’s mail, both by operating interagency mail service and serving as an intermediary with the USPS for all mail coming to and from city agencies.
The Comptroller also sits on six boards:
- The Board of Estimates (BOE), which approves the City’s budgeting, spending, construction, personnel and procurement contracts.
- The Board of Finance (BOF), which issues City bonds and loans, reviews the City’s capital budget and is responsible for all City trusts and investments
- The Employees’ Retirement Systems Board (ERSB), the Board of Trustees for the Retirement Savings Plan (RSP), and the Fire & Police Employees’ Retirement Systems Board (F&P) which govern all of the City’s pension funds.
- The Board of the Baltimore Museum of Art.
The Comptroller’s Executive office manages the day-to-day operations of the BOE including agenda drafting, review, analysis, and document retention.
Through this oversight, the Comptroller’s Office is expected to play the role of fiscal watchdog by keeping residents informed on how their money is being spent.
