VisitPITTSBURGH audit raises serious questions

PITTSBURGH — An audit conducted by the Allegheny County Controller’s office is raising serious questions about VisitPITTSBURGH, the agency that promotes tourism in Pittsburgh and relies mainly on the hotel tax as a source of funding.

Previous coverage: Channel 11 investigates not-for-profit agency funded by hotel tax

The audit by Controller Corey O’Connor accuses the agency of failing to “clearly identify how hotel tax dollars have been spent.” It also said the agency failed to provide compensation-related data concerning some salaries.

“We view this lack of transparency as a major cause for concern,” the audit says.

The audit also revealed that “key local stakeholders” are not being represented on the VisitPITTSBURGH Board.

State Senator Wayne Fontana (D-Pittsburgh) called for the audit after he expressed concern that VisitPITTSBURGH had requested an increase in the hotel tax to obtain more funding.

Click here to read VisitPittsburgh’s response to the audit.

Read the full audit below:

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