Audit Finds Pasadena Street Maintenance Program Hampered by Funding Shortfalls

The Pasadena Finance/Audit Committee is scheduled to review an independent audit revealing that nearly two-thirds of the city’s street system requires significant repair or upkeep, hindered by ongoing funding shortfalls and outdated management tools.

The committee will discuss the informational report Monday, March 23. The audit, dated March 2, 2026, and conducted by TAP International, Inc. as part of the 2025/2026 Internal Audit Plan, evaluated the resources, policies, and challenges facing the Department of Public Works.

The report highlights that of Pasadena’s 357 miles of streets, 216 miles require paving and 75 miles require maintenance. The city’s current overall Pavement Condition Index (PCI) rating remains stuck at 58 out of 100, unchanged from its 2019 level. In fiscal year 2025, the city spent $671,307 per mile to resurface 11.5 centerline miles of road.

A key finding is that funding levels remain below recommended targets. While a 2020 consultant recommended an annual budget of $13.6 million to improve street conditions to a PCI of 66, actual Capital Improvement Program funding between 2022 and 2025 ranged from $3.75 million to $11 million. The new Public Works Director has set a goal to improve the overall PCI score to 80 by 2030, estimating it will require $25 million to $30 million annually. To address this gap, Public Works and the Fire Department are researching the potential of a future bond measure to generate funding.

The audit also identified significant gaps in the department’s control environment. The city currently lacks formal pavement management policies or procedures, and there are no formal protocols for ensuring data quality for the PCI or the work order system. This lack of a formal framework increases the risk of street and sidewalk deterioration. Between fiscal years 2023 and 2025, the city received 164 property and bodily injury claims, 48 of which resulted in over $7.5 million in total paid and estimated future payments related to deteriorated roadway and sidewalk conditions.

Operational challenges further limit the program’s effectiveness. The audit found that field crews have had to rely on manual tools and a 28-year-old backhoe, contributing to employee injuries. Between January 2024 and March 2025, the city paid $428,122 for 33 workers’ compensation claims filed since 2015 by Street Maintenance employees for injuries sustained on the job. Additionally, the lack of a hot-box asphalt truck resulted in the disposal of an estimated 153 tons of cooled, unusable asphalt in a single year. To resolve this, Public Works has purchased a 2-ton hot-box truck to be delivered in December 2026.