COMMISSION
AGENDA MEMORANDUM Item No. 8b________
ACTION ITEM Date of Meeting October 10, 2023________
DATE: October 2, 2023
TO: Steve Metruck, Executive Director
FROM: Eloise Olivar, AFR Senior Manager Disbursements
SUBJECT: Claims and Obligations –September 2023
ACTION REQUESTED
Request Port Commission approval of the Port Auditor’s payment of the salaries and claims of the Port
pursuant to RCW 42.24.180 for payments issued during the period September 1 through 30, 2023 as follows:
Payment Type Payment Reference
Start Number
Payment
Reference End
Number
Amount
Accounts Payable Checks
949989
950358
$ 14,929,671.83
Accounts Payable ACH
058329
059214
$ 63,656,138.66
Accounts Payable Wire Transfers
016137
016152
$ 13,650,008.09
Payroll Checks
208789
209322
$ 213,803.50
Payroll ACH
1153809
1158540
$ 15,182,251.54
Total Payments
$107,631,873.62
Pursuant to RCW 42.24.180, “the Port’s legislative body” (the Commission) is required to approve in a public
meeting all payments of claims within one month of issuance.
OVERSIGHT
All these payments have been previously authorized either through direct Commission action or delegation
of authority to the Executive Director and through his or her staff. Detailed information on Port expenditures
is provided to the Commission through comprehensive budget presentations as well as the publicly released
Budget Document, which provides an even greater level of detail. The Port’s operating and capital budget is
approved by resolution in December for the coming fiscal year, and the Commission also approves the Salary
and Benefit Resolution around the same time to authorize pay and benefit programs. Notwithstanding the
Port’s budget approval, individual capital projects and contracts exceeding certain dollar thresholds are also
subsequently brought before the Commission for specific authorization prior to commencement of the
project or contract—if they are below the thresholds the Executive Director is delegated authority to approve
them. Expenditures are monitored against budgets monthly by management and reported comprehensively
to the Commission quarterly.
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. 8b
Meeting Date October 10, 2023
Effective internal controls over all Port procurement, contracting and disbursements are also in place to
ensure proper central oversight, delegation of authority, separation of duties, payment approval and
documentation, and signed perjury statement certifications for all payments. Port disbursements are also
regularly monitored against spending authorizations. All payment transactions and internal controls are
subject to periodic Port internal audits and annual external audits conducted by both the State Auditor’s
Office and the Port’s independent auditors.
For the month of September 2023, over $92,235,818.58 in payments were made to nearly 735 vendors,
comprised of 1,972 invoices and over 9,046 accounting expense. About 95 percent of the accounts payable
payments made in the month fall into the Construction, Employee Benefits, Payroll Taxes, Contracted
Services, Janitorial Services, Sales Taxes, Utility Expenses, Maintenance Inventory, Environmental
Remediation, and Parking Taxes. Payroll expenses for the month of September were $15,396,055.04.
Top 15 Payment Category Summary:
Category
Payment Amount
Construction
52,251,966.55
Employee Benefits
11,135,858.39
Payroll Taxes
5,965,861.33
Contracted Services
5,427,047.07
Janitorial Services
3,721,460.77
Sales Taxes
3,605,798.38
Utility Expenses
2,861,198.06
Maintenance Inventory
945,109.34
Environmental Remediation
913,154.63
Parking Taxes
770,616.24
Software
646,718.58
Legal
628,086.82
Room/Space/Land Rental
530,250.27
Miscellaneous Expense
488,421.70
Equipment Maintenance
335,916.34
Other Categories Total:
2,008,354.11
Net Payroll
15,396,055.04
Total Payments :
$107,631,873.62
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. 8b
Meeting Date October 10, 2023
Appropriate and effective internal controls are in place to ensure that the above obligations were processed
in accordance with Port of Seattle procurement/payment policies and delegation of authority.
At a meeting of the Port Commission held on October 10, 2023, it is hereby moved that, pursuant to
RCW 42.24.180, the Port Commission approves the Port Auditor’s payment of the above salaries and claims
of the Port:
Port Commission