New county financial head Fernandez-Barquin targets transparency

An amendment to the state’s constitution has now tasked the clerk of courts with the responsibility of also being the county’s top financial officer. What lies ahead for Miami-Dade is transparency of funds and a long-term goal to have a dashboard that the public can engage with to see how funds are used.

In 2018 state voters approved Amendment 10 to the constitution, noted Juan Fernandez-Barquin, the county’s clerk of the court and comptroller. The amendment obligated every county to elect a sheriff, supervisor of elections, property appraiser, tax collector, and a clerk of the court and comptroller.

Essentially, the finance department of the county will now be handled by the clerk of the court and comptroller.

The finance department for the county was formerly under the mayor’s purview, said Mr. Fernandez-Barquin. With the passing of Amendment 10, he said, “which specifically clarifies that Miami-Dade and Broward must abide by this beginning, Jan. 7, 2025, it forced the county’s hands to transfer the finance department under my supervision.”

Though there was an amendment in the constitution, not much change is to be expected.

“The finance function will not change in any substantial way from an operational perspective,” said Mr. Fernandez-Barquin. “The transition will ensure that … the county residents and county employees and the constitutional offices continue to receive the same services that they’ve received in the past, so everything will largely remain the same. My biggest goal is transparency of the funds … so that our residents can see how we’re spending our taxpayer dollars.”

There are four principal duties of being a comptroller, he said, which are: custodian of funds for the county, accountant for the Board of County Commissioners, county auditor, and county investor.

“With the transfer of the finance department, I assume these duties … and so we’ve been planning for the last several months, for the last year,” said Mr. Fernandez-Barquin. “My office has been planning this transition to ensure a smooth transition for the residents of the county and for the employees here.”

Mr. Fernandez-Barquin said there won’t be much change at the moment.

“For the next couple of months,” he said, “over the next three to six months, I’ll be taking a close look at our policies and seeing what we can change to improve our services for our county residents and to increase the supervision to make sure that the county dollars are being used the way they were meant to be used. My long-term goal, in regards to transparency, is to have a dashboard that the public can engage with to see how our funds are being used.”

The position is administrative and ministerial, he said. The county commission, with the approval of the mayor’s office, determines how money is spent. “I just simply make sure that the money is being spent the way it was dictated. Specifically, under the custodian of county funds, the goal is to ensure that payments are made timely according to the services provided that the contractual obligations approved by the Board of County Commissioners and their policies that dictate how funds should be spent.”

Mr. Fernandez-Barquin said prior to a payment being issued, he must ensure it is proper and there is sufficient budget capacity. Part of this process also requires a sole review of finance related procedures and policies, he explained, “affording me the opportunity to ensure that best practices are in place.”
As the investor of the county funds, he’s bound to the policy set in state statutes and the county, he said. As a result, there’s very little flexibility for “me to make any changes beyond what’s set in state statute and set in the county code. However, from an economics perspective, there are parts of that policy that I believe should be amended, and I’m able to work with our legislative partners in Tallahassee and in the county commission to effectuate change.”

In regard to the county auditor position, said Mr. Fernandez-Barquin, he has tasked his chief auditor with performing a risk assessment of county operations to help establish an audit plan for calendar year 2025.

“The purpose of the risk assessment is to provide that mechanisms are in place that help management achieve organizational objectives through good governance, risk management and controls,” he said, “first by identifying potential issues early; second, by helping define the audit approach to establish an audit plan; third, allowing the proper allocation resources more effectively.”

“And fourth,” he said, “most important, helping evaluate existing internal controls, how effective they are in preventing material financial misstatements, whether it’s due to errors or waste or fraud or misuse of funds or resources. It’s an incredibly important job. I’m up to the task. I’m incredibly excited about the future of this position, and most of all, the county, and I’m incredibly excited to serve the community in this capacity.”