General Information
The office of the Controller is an autonomous Office of City Government headed by the City Controller, an independently elected official. This office is responsible for the review and approval of all expenditures and obligations of the City.
Performing the internal audit function requires that all purchase orders, warrants, contracts and agreements be reviewed for compliance with the Third Class City Code, other state laws, City of Harrisburg administrative policies and City ordinances. The signature of the Controller is a legal requirement on all of the aforementioned documents. This office also issues monthly financial reports to the Mayor and City Council which analyze revenues and expenditures for all budgeted funds.
Our Mission
The mission of our office is to ensure the fiscal health of the City of Harrisburg by advising the general public, City Council and Mayor of the City’s financial condition. We believe transparency in government is an essential tool to fiscal health and are committed to providing it to all. It is our duty to monitor and enforce the annually adopted budget, perform necessary audits and assure that all expenditures are correct and appropriately authorized. In the course of performing our duties we strive to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of city government in general.
For information on how to contact us and other city officials please visit the Contact Us page.
CHARLIE DEBRUNNER Harrisburg City Controller
Charlie DeBrunner, MPA, graduated from the Institute of Public Administration at the University Park campus of Penn State. The topic of Charlie's master thesis concerned abandoned housing in Harrisburg PA.
Charlie began his career on the research faculty of the Institute. He provided research and consulting services in the areas of public budgeting, public safety, and city planning for four third class cities: Harrisburg, York, Wilkes-Barre, and Bridgeport CN.
Charlie's primary focus in Harrisburg was its budgeting system. The result was a program budgeting system that was designed to link expenditures to performance measures. The system was subsequently abandoned.
Charlie was offered and accepted the position of Harrisburg Budget Director and worked for Mayor Harold Swenson and briefly for Mayor Tim Doutrich.
Subsequent to his position with the city, Charlie moved to the Pennsylvania Department of Welfare where he was responsible for comprehensively upgrading the reimbursement system for Pennsylvania's inpatient hospitals.
He moved to the Hospital Association of Pennsylvania where he was Assistant Vice President of Hospital Finance.
Charlie started his own healthcare consulting company in 1995. The company was sold in 2013.
Charlie received a BA in Political Science from Susquehanna University.
He is married to Gloria Klugh and has two children and a wonderful granddaughter.
WILLIAM LEINBERGER Deputy City Controller
William Leinberger, CPA, CMA, CIA, began his tenure with the City of Harrisburg in 1999 as the City’s Accounting and Financial Reporting Systems Manager in the Accounting Office. This position was responsible for cash flow planning related to payroll, debt service, and operations; Maintaining and adjusting the City’s ledger accounts, including all year-end adjustments; Coordinating the annual audit with the external auditing firm; Preparing the annual State Liquid Fuels report; Calculating the City’s annual Minimum Municipal Obligation for three pension plans; Preparing the annual Debt Statement; Preparing the annual Auditor General Municipal Pension and Fire Relief forms; Preparing the annual Public Utility Realty Tax Act filing; The Unclaimed Property report; Fixed asset reporting; and the year-end IRS Form 1096 filing.
Mr. Leinberger was promoted to the position of Finance Director, reporting directly to the Business Administrator. While maintaining his responsibilities as the Accounting and Financial Reporting Systems Manager, he also had responsibility for the Department of Administration’s Budget Office and Purchasing Office, while working closely with the Treasurer’s Office. This position played an integral role in creating and coordinating the annual budget, the Mid-Year budget projections, year-end reallocation plan and budgetary control through the City’s encumbrance system.
In January of 2010, Mr. Leinberger assumed the position Chief Deputy Controller for the City of Harrisburg. He hopes to utilize his prior fiscal experience to fulfill the Controller’s Office mission of “ensuring the fiscal health of the City of Harrisburg by advising the general public, City Council, and Mayor of the City’s financial condition”.
Mr. Leinberger has also served the public as a Tax Examiner for the Internal Revenue Service at the Philadelphia Service Center and as a Fiscal Associate for the State of Maryland, Carroll County Health Department. He has also worked in the private sector for a regional banking institution performing the investment accounting and Securities and Exchange Commission reporting. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Pennsylvania State University with a major in Professional Accountancy.
MICHAEL THOMAS Auditor
Michael graduated from Bloomsburg University, earning a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with his major in Accounting. He has experience working in public and non-profit accounting. Prior to joining the Controller’s Office in January 2015, Michael worked as a Staff Accountant for a large non-profit in Phoenix, Arizona. He is happy to be back home in Pennsylvania, and eager to make a difference in the city of Harrisburg.