Annual report: See how our Office provided accountability and transparency of public funds in 2024

The State Auditor’s Office invites you to scroll through an interactive report of our activities during fiscal year 2024. We are proud of our efforts to work with local governments and state agencies to ensure accountability and transparency for public resources. 

We conducted more than 2,700 audits on the public’s behalf during fiscal year 2024, and identified significant instances of misappropriation in some local governments and one state agency. In the second year of our no-cost cyber checkups – a new review aimed at helping local governments quickly assess their vulnerability to common threats – we identified common themes and developed resources to help governments address them. 

Other work focused on issues of common concern:

• Half of the findings of our audit of federal funds related to issues we previously reported to state management, including some for more than a decade. Unresolved findings increase audit costs for taxpayers because we are required to follow up on issues until the agencies resolve them. 

• With limited supplies in greater demand, Washington needs to better understand current water system data to reduce the loss of drinkable water. Our audit found the Department of Health does not know how much drinking water most municipal water systems lose through their distribution pipes. The audit made several recommendations for improvement. 

• Our audit report on the process of civil asset forfeiture, the first of its kind in Washington, found several notable aspects of forfeiture in our state, including that state law gives police broad authority but few protections to property owners, and that forfeiture typically involved low-value property. 

Here is a PDF version of the document, which includes printing instructions at the end.

Happy holidays and thank you for being partners in public accountability.

We want to hear from you. Questions, comments or concerns? Email webmaster@sao.wa.gov.