Joseph L. Harris, CPA, CIA
Senior Advisor – Muncipal Government

Joe has over 15 years of high-level Government leadership and management experience and has extensive knowledge of Governmental accounting, financial, economic, operational, and accountability issues at the Federal, state, and local levels.

Joe was the state-appointed Emergency Financial Manager for the City of Benton Harbor, MI – and turned Benton Harbor’s $1 million General-Fund deficit into break-even — on a $6 million General Fund Budget. Previously, Joe served for 10 years as the Auditor General for the City of Detroit followed by a short stint as Detroit’s CFO. In 2004, long before the advent of GASB 43 and GASB 45 requiring the disclosure of unfunded liabilities for retiree health-care benefits for state and local Government workers, Joe engaged J.L. Boyle International to determine the unaffordable total magnitude of Detroit’s unfunded liabilities for pensions and retiree-healthcare ($8.9 billion).

Prior to his career in Government, Joe spent 20 years in auditing, consulting, and financial management. Joe also has served as an Adjunct Professor of Accounting at Wayne State University and Oakland Community College and on numerous boards of professional organizations and academic institutions.

Joe earned his BBA from the University of Detroit and holds an MBA from the University of Michigan. In addition, he is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified Internal Auditor (CIA).