Denver's auditor is weighing outside legal options in his fight for budget records. Here's what powers the Council has given his office

Denver Auditor Timothy O'Brien says he is considering outside legal options to get records he needs for an audit of how the city builds its budget, 9News reported on Oct. 28.

O'Brien said his office has asked the Department of Finance and the budget office for information, including access to the system used to put the budget together, and has been turned down. "To date, we've been denied access to any and all of that information," he told the station. He said the request is essentially the same as one made a year ago.

Why it matters: the audit is meant to check the process that decides how Denver spends its money. It is running at the same time the Council finishes the 2027 budget.

This is a follow-up to our Oct. 23 story, Denver's auditor says the mayor's office is stalling his budget audit.

Both sides, on the record

The auditor. O'Brien told 9News the city charter gives his office broad access to city records, naming the books and records of the Department of Finance. He said he is examining how the budget is put together, not judging spending decisions. He also said the city attorney works for the mayor and is, in his view, conflicted. He told the station he prefers to settle this without a lawsuit, has spoken with Mayor Mike Johnston, and is "somewhat optimistic," but is not certain.

The administration. The mayor's office and the City Attorney's Office cite what is called deliberative process privilege, which protects internal drafts and discussions. The mayor's office told 9News it has given the auditor hundreds of pages over several months and has withheld only "deliberative, draft documents that are not responsive." Axios Denver first reported the dispute on Oct. 21.

No court or outside body has ruled on who is right.

What our records add

The Council gave the auditor subpoena power in 2024, for contractors. On Sept. 9, 2024, the Council passed Council Bill 24-0813, which lets the auditor issue investigatory subpoenas to city contractors for internal audits (Legistar). It passed 13-0 (roll call). Council member Kevin Flynn called it the result of a three-year effort and described the compromise: the auditor first has to show the city's Audit Committee that a subpoena is necessary (video at 1:02:43). As written, that ordinance covers contractors. It does not address records held by city departments such as Finance, which is what this dispute is about.

The Council has put money behind the office. During last year's budget amendments, on Nov. 3, 2025, Council member Jamie Torres described an amendment moving $379,000 from contingency to the auditor's office to restore its base budget, after the mayor had offered $120,000 (video at 6:48).

Voters are deciding a related question. Question 2H on the Nov. 3 ballot would write into the charter that the auditor may keep enforcing wage and workplace laws the Council passes. The Council referred it 11-0 in July. See our explainer on 2H and 2J. It is about wage enforcement, not the budget audit.

The budget process is changing too. If voters approve Question 2I, the Council could move to two-year budgets by ordinance.

What's next

• Nov. 2: the last Council meeting where members can propose amendments to the 2027 budget.
• Nov. 9: the Council's final budget vote.
• July 19, 2027: O'Brien's term ends, so some of his audits may be finished by his successor, Axios has reported.