Staff from the Office of the Washington State Auditor are happy to (virtually) join our colleagues here to connect as we all navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. We have a lot to share with you.
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The Single Audit examines whether Washington state agencies complied with federal grant requirements. This visual report provides a summary of Washington’s 2019 Single Audit.
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Each year, as required by law, the state publishes its Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) to provide information on the state’s financial position. To make this important information accessible to the broadest possible audience, the State Auditor’s Office prepares this CAFR summary to provide a snapshot of the state’s financial position, including revenues and expenditures, cash balances and debt.
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Two fire protection districts received a State Auditor’s Office Stewardship Award (SASA) from State Auditor Pat McCarthy this week for their dedication to improving government for the residents of Washington state.
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The federal counterpart to the Office of the Washington State Auditor, the Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on Tuesday demonstrating the vitally important role of cybersecurity auditing in the information age. Vulnerabilities in government systems can be exploited by criminals looking to harm the public, as detailed in the GAO’s audit findings.
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Governments are vulnerable to cybersecurity breeches. In this way, they don’t vary much from private-sector businesses, whose sometimes spectacular cybersecurity failings grab headlines. So, as a government with limited resources, how do you prepare for the inevitability of some bad actor trying to access sensitive information?
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Photo courtesy of the Washington Army National Guard
In early July, our Senior IT Security Specialist Sunia (Lulu) Laulile (pictured)participated in the International Collegiate Cyber Defense Invitational at Highline College in Des Moines, Washington. In this exercise, Lulu’s team attacked the systems the students were defending. You can read more about this event on the Washington Army National Guard’s blog.
Department’s Complaint Resolution Unit (CRU) and field operations within the Aging and Long-Term Support Administration made significant improvements to resolve a long-standing audit finding and improve services to its clients.
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In 2017, Washington state spent more than $17.5 billion in federal money. Each year, the State of Washington Single Audit (SWSA) examines whether state agencies complied with federal requirements for those funds. As a whole, the state does meet those requirements. Today, we published our summary of the longer, more comprehensive report, together with an interactive data visualization available on our website. Please check it out, and let us know what you think in the comments.
… CONTINUE READING → As local governments in Washington and across the United States deal with increasingly sophisticated attacks aimed at bringing down vital government services residents depend on, the need for careful controls and cyber security measures grows ever more crucial. At the Office of the Washington State Auditor, one of the resources we provide local governments with is helping them increase their cyber security in anticipation of just such events as outlined in the New York Times below. Are you interested in learning more about how we can help? Click here to read cyber security resources.
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