HOUSTON -- Houston Mayor Bill White is under scrutiny concerning last year's city budget report, KPRC Local 2 reported Wednesday.

The chairman of the Harris County Republican party wants to know why city leaders are already looking ahead to next year's budget when last year's report still has not been released.

Party officials said it's taxpayer money and it's time residents knew how their money was spent in 2006. But they said the mayor's office has still not completed an audit of the annual financial statement.

"I think Houstonians care about good government and that's why they care about this audit coming out. They want to see how their government spends their money," said Jeff Yates with the Harris County Republican Party.

There is nearly a four-month-long grace period after the October deadline.

But the city missed that and is now in violation of local code.

Members of the local Republican Party are concerned that the next budget is already being discussed even though the public has not seen last year's report.

The mayor said it is routine.

"I think it's a pretty ordinary thing that there's organizations that for whatever reason who -- you know, people file extensions on the New York Stock Exchange all the time -- where they have a particular audit issue," Bill White said.

White said a computer transition in June and July of 2006 paired with a flood of invoices from the Federal Emergency Management Agency caused the long delay.

He told KPRC Local 2 that this is not a matter of revealing the city's true financial condition.

He said it's just a matter of wrapping up paperwork.

"Well, that remains to be seen. But the facts are that it's almost seven months overdue. Where is it? When can we expect it to arrive? Then we'll make a judgment on what's on the report," Yates said.

The mayor said Houstonians should expect to see results soon.

"It's going to be out any day now. Not in response to the letter, but in response to me and the controller saying repeatedly, 'We need to get this thing wrapped up.' And that was an estimate that was given some days ago before I saw this letter," White said.

The Harris County Republican Party spokesman said they would pursue legal action if the financial report and audit are not finished and published within 10 days.