Bethel hires a Louisiana firm to audit local businesses for unpaid city taxes

The City of Bethel has hired Revenue Recovery Group, a Baton Rouge, Louisiana, firm, to audit local businesses for unpaid city taxes. The firm introduces itself to the city's Finance Committee on Monday, Oct. 26.

The contract "has been finalized and initiated," Finance Director Nella Poquette wrote in her September finance report. The firm will help audit local sales, alcohol, marijuana and accommodations taxes.

The city hired the firm without bidding, as Alaska News reported July 28. A January 2025 request for proposals drew no qualified bidders, and when the finance department contacted firms directly, Revenue Recovery Group was the only one that answered, according to a June city memo. The Finance Committee voted 4-0 on Aug. 24 to approve the sole-source paperwork, according to draft minutes.

The report doesn't say what the final contract costs. The firm's June quotes, which the city called tentative, capped consulting at $19,999, with a $3,500 deposit and $350 an hour after that, according to the Finance Committee's Sept. 28 packet. The audits themselves were quoted at $85 an hour for a first review of up to five hours per audit, then $250 an hour, with no maximum.

The city expects recovered taxes to cover the cost. Its memo put the direct fiscal impact at $0.

Sales tax is the biggest piece of Bethel's tax revenue. This year's budget counts on $8.4 million in local sales tax, out of $12.1 million in total taxes. Last fiscal year, sales tax came in 4.7% under budget, at about $8 million, Alaska News reported. This July, the city collected $622,864 in local sales tax, $126,201 in bed tax and $58,142 in marijuana tax, according to Poquette's preliminary report.

In slides for Monday's meeting, the firm says it has done more than 67,000 audits for more than 120 government agencies since 1989. It says it will "avoid unnecessary disruption to the business community."