This Wednesday, April 22 is Earth Day, so it seems quite appropriate that two of the best performance audit experts on the planet will be discussing our work related to environmental issues on that day. Thank you to Justin and Shauna for connecting with our colleagues!

Learn why the century-old practice of financial annual filing is the cornerstone of government accountability in our latest episode of the Aud Pod podcast.

We appreciate the coverage of our latest performance audit by The Seattle Times. For more details, including a link to our full report, you may visit our website: https://ow.ly/Rpwx50YMSnp

State Auditor Pat McCarthy will be a guest speaker April 22 at WSCPA’s Governmental Accounting and Auditing Conference webcast. She’ll be on hand to discuss our Office’s work and its role in helping promote accountability and transparency in government. Learn more: https://ow.ly/bBTk50YKJYt

We figured we'd get your weekend started off on the right foot (paw) with a couple of pictures from Theo the Wonder Corgi's 9th birthday party yesterday. As our unofficial mascot, we appreciate his can-do attitude and infectious smile! #TheoTheWonderCorgi

More coverage of our latest performance audit that examined lawfully mandated police training requirements. Take a deeper dive on our website: https://ow.ly/ANbR50YK93n

In an episode of Jeopardy! with host Ken Jennings that aired earlier this week, the Daily Double clue in the 'state government' category was: "Washington & Maine each have a state one of these officials to examine accounting records." The contestant answered correctly. Can you? #GameShowFamous

We’ve updated not one, not two, but THREE of our most popular resources to help guide your local government through the bidding and purchasing process. Learn more and download these guides today!

ICYMI: A summary and link to our newly published performance audit report as cited in this story by KOMO News can be found on our website: https://ow.ly/OMls50YJTm0

Look who dressed up for their special day! Happy 9th birthday to our unofficial mascot, Theo the Wonder Corgi. May the day be filled with never-ending snacks and squeakie toys!

We're hiring for paid audit intern positions in multiple locations. Learn more and apply today: https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/washington/sao

Washington law includes deadlines to provide police training in areas such as de-escalation and mental health awareness. Are these deadlines being met? Are police agencies in compliance with requirements? We sought to find out in our latest performance audit.

Learn how to harness the power of SAO’s Financial Intelligence Tool (FIT) and explore your government’s financial data with our series of short overview videos highlighting key FIT features. Start today with FIT's "Individual Governments" feature! #GoodGovernment

Minnesota county suffers its second major cyberattack of the year, a cautionary tale for governments of all types and sizes. Learn how our Office can help your Washington-state government be better prepared: https://sao.wa.gov/improving-government/becybersmart

ICYMI: Boiling down a look into billions of dollars in federal funds is kind of our thing. Check out our short infographic summary of the fiscal year 2025 single audit of the state’s federal funding today.

Since the first of the year our Office has completed 605 audits, with 697 more in progress—and we're just getting started. Visit our website to learn more about our work on behalf of Washingtonians: https://www.sao.wa.gov

Senior Performance Auditor Brenton Clark appreciates SAO’s support for continuous improvement. “We are always on the lookout for ways to make our work more efficient and effective,” he says. Thank you for your commitment to public service, Brenton, We truly appreciate you! #WeAreSAO

MAY 30 will be here before we know it. We encourage all 2025 year-end local governments to submit their annual filing with our Office by the deadline. (Truth be told, before the deadline would be even better.) Learn more: https://ow.ly/VCBJ50YomK9

Here’s a video of how the bad guys compromise passwords, to help the good guys (that’s all of us!) develop processes to prevent it from happening to them. #GoodGovernment

Learn how to harness the power of SAO’s Financial Intelligence Tool (FIT) and explore your government’s financial data with our series of short overview videos highlighting key FIT features. Get started today with FIT’s “Financial Health” feature. #GoodGovernment

Today’s number of 34 represents the number of different local government types in Washington—from cities, to counties, to fire districts and more. Learn more and start exploring these governments' financial data with our Financial Intelligence Tool (FIT): https://ow.ly/SVMr50XSEAp

Don’t have time to read 1,000+ pages of our recently published Federal Single Audit Report including a look at child care subsidies? We got you. Check out our short infographic summary today.

Thank you to the Washington State Association of County Auditors for having SAO staff share their expertise at this month's WSACA Finance Conference. We appreciate connecting with our colleagues! Shown left to right: Stacie Tellers, Brad White, Olivia Crouch and Niles Kostick. #GoodGovernment

You can learn more about our annual Statewide Single Audit as highlighted in this story by KOMO News on our website, including a link to a short infographic summary of the results: https://ow.ly/Ng5M50YAYIQ

Earlier today our Office published its massive annual audit of almost $24 billion in federal funds including a look at child care subsidies. Learn more in our press release that features links to an infographic summary and other key data.

We've received reports of people getting texts from the "Washington State Auditor Collections Unit" asking for vehicle-related payments. THIS IS A SCAM. Our Office doesn’t collect payments from the public at all. Do not respond to this text message or click on any links. Continue to be vigilant.

Thank you to State Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti hosting State Auditor Pat McCarthy and SAO leadership to discuss our shared commitment to public service. Treasurer Pellicciotti showed a Treasurer/Auditor check from 1889—more proof of our offices’ long-standing dedication to serving Washingtonians!

🌶️🌶️🌶️Congratulations to the winners of SAO’s staff Chili Cook-Off and Cornbread Competition! Scott Frank took top honors in the chili contest with his flavorful Chile verde creation, while SAO’s Brandon Tecca won the judges’ hearts with his honey jalapeño cornbread. #WeAreSAO #ChillinWithChili

Filing annual reports on time is critical to providing accountability and transparency for Washingtonians. As a reminder, the annual filing deadline for 2025 year-end governments is May 30. Learn more: https://www.sao.wa.gov/bars-annual-filing/bars-annual-report-filing-faqs

Properly reconciling your government’s bank account can help identify fraud and flag errors before it’s too late. To help you improve your process, we’ve recently updated our related guide with more best practices and updated guidance. Learn more in our latest blog post.

ICYMI: The Columbia Basin Herald recently covered our audit work related to the Moses Lake School District. You can also read more and find a link to our report on our website: https://ow.ly/5vSV50Yyh3y

Local governments can get help assessing their cyber posture with our award-winning cyber checkups, which include actionable steps for improvement—all at no cost. Learn more at https://sao.wa.gov/becybersmart

State weighs in with its two cents on pennies. Read more in this story by Washington State Standard.

In this short video from a previous presentation to financial colleagues, State Auditor Pat McCarthy gives a brief glimpse into some of the work SAO does on behalf of Washingtonians.

Shout out to the Washington State Association of County Auditors (WSACA) for hosting its Finance Conference last week and having SAOers share their expertise! #GoodGovernment

Try our custom Wordle puzzle today! Today's clue: "Ours is to promote accountability and transparency in government." See how many tries it takes you!

Spring smile, corgi style!

One of our most popular resources for helping local governments prevent fraud has been updated! Learn more in our Audit Connection Blog: https://ow.ly/27U850YvZu9

https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2026/PSA260309 City and county officials beware: The FBI has issued a warning of an emerging phishing scheme by criminals impersonating city and county officials to solicit fraudulent payments for planning and zoning permits. Learn more in their public service announcment.

SAO’s Felicia DenAdel still comes to work every day with the same passion she did when she started with us 30 years ago. “I wake up each day excited that I get to do a job that is so fulfilling!” she said. “I love that I can help governments and auditors on behalf of the public.” #WeAreSAO

Follow us on your favorite social media today and learn interesting tidbits about our work, staff, podcasts, breaking news…and of course our unofficial mascot, Theo the Wonder Corgi (duh). Find all of our social media links at https://sao.wa.gov/social

Learn how to harness the power of SAO’s Financial Intelligence Tool (FIT) and explore your government’s financial data with our series of short overview videos highlighting key FIT features. Get started today with FIT’s “Navigate by Dollars” feature.

Happy National Pi Day tomorrow, which commemorates the number 3.14 and the rest of its infinite digits. As auditors we’re excited about any day that celebrates numbers—which reminds us, mark your calendars for Fibonacci Day in November! #WeLoveNumbers

There’s nothing like a solid checklist, especially if it’s a solid checklist that’s recently been updated! Case in point: our customizable checklist designed to help local governments reporting under cash basis with their year-end process. Learn more in our latest blog post.

What do local governments think of our free, award-winning cyber checkup service? Hear what the City of Port Townsend's Network Administrator, David Olsen, had to say in our latest podcast episode.

Congratulations to the Statute Law Committee of the Washington State Legislature for receiving a State Auditor’s Stewardship Award in recognition of its commitment to promoting a culture of accountability for public resources. Thank you for promoting good financial stewardship! #GoodGovernment

Shout out to Breanna and Dylan from our Office, along with all of the enthusiastic students they met, for making last week’s FUSE Career Fair a fun AND informative event! If you missed out, no worries. Learn about our work culture here: https://sao.wa.gov/about-sao/careers-and-culture

ICYMI: The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners looks back at notable fraud cases from 2025 in this episode of their Fraud Talk podcast. Interesting, infuriating and insightful all at the same time.

As this story from illustrates, cyber losses can greatly harm local governments and their residents—especially smaller entities with limited resources. Office of the Washington State Auditor can help with services like our free cyber checkup program. Learn more: https://ow.ly/k5p050YpJEX

Today is 'Slam the Scam' Day, part of National Consumer Protection Week dedicated to highlighting tools and tips to fight fraud. Local governments can find helpful resources to detect and deter fraud each and every day on our website: https://sao.wa.gov/improving-government/preventing-fraud