FIT gets a data refresh, the return of a popular feature, and a new financial health indicator guide

Nov 26, 2024

As the days shorten, the Office of the Washington State Auditor’s Financial Intelligence Tool (FIT) expands, offering users a refreshed set of financial data, new ways to explore statewide revenue and expenditure trends, and a helpful financial health indicator reference guide. Read on to discover these exciting new updates. 

FIT’s fall data refresh 

Each quarter, our Office captures the most recent snapshot of financial data submitted by you, our local governments. FIT now contains nearly $78 billion in revenues across more than 2,000 governments – including $22 billion collected by school districts, which FIT has included since August.  

There are no extra steps needed to access the newest data. Simply visit portal.sao.wa.gov/FIT to explore the freshest batch of data. 

The newest way to trend revenue and expenditure data 

If you’ve been looking for a better way to explore specific revenues or expenditures, or compare government finances, we have something for you. FIT now offers 11 years of revenue and expenditure data, trended by government. Use the “Navigate by Dollars” panel on FIT’s homepage to uncover: 

  • Statewide trends of total tax revenues each government has collected over the past 11 years 

  • Which governments collect or spend similar amounts by revenue or expenditure account each year 

  • Detailed views of total expenditures by government type, like school districts, sorted and filtered by county 

  • Options to export your customized view to Excel for further analysis  

Exploring this data is simple:  

  1. Go to portal.sao.wa.gov/FIT 

  1. Select “Navigate By Dollars” 

  1. Choose a revenue or expenditure category (for example, taxes, public safety or any of the 1,000+ accounts available).  

  1. Select to explore this “By Government” or “By Government Type” 

Pro Tip: Use the “Options” menu to customize your view, filters, sorting and more for a tailored view of the data. 

Learn more about financial health 

Want to gain a better understanding of the financial health option used to explore FIT data?  The State Auditor’s Office recently published a comprehensive reference guide covering FIT’s financial health indicators. We provide financial health indicators as a way for local governments to monitor themselves using each government’s own data they submit to our Office each year. These indicators are available on each government’s profile within FIT.  

The guide covers: 

  • The definition of each indicator 

  • Benchmarks and how they’re determined 

  • Why each indicator matters 

  • What it means to have a good, cautionary or concerning outlook 

You’ll also find an appendix with background information offering insights into what other organizations say about each benchmark. 

Find the guide in the FIT application Help menu or on the financial health profile, or in our Office’s Resource Library. 

Connect with us 

We are always looking for ways to create a better experience for our users, and we hope these FIT features deliver. If you'd like more in-depth guidance or have specific questions, the State Auditor’s Office offers personal training sessions to answer your questions and walk you through FIT.  

For questions about our latest updates or to schedule a training session, email us at Center@sao.wa.gov.