Fighting fraud in government: How SAO’s efforts help protect public resources

The cornerstone of accountability: government annual filing

For more than 100 years local governments in our state have filed their annual financial reports with what is now the Office of the Washington State Auditor. It’s a process that takes place ‘behind the scenes’ to most Washingtonians, but one that has far-reaching effects for government transparency and accountability. Why does this matter and how does it affect the residents of our state? Luckily for you, this episode of the Aud Pod features someone who can tell us: Stacie Tellers, Program Manager for SAO’s Local Government Services. You may visit SAO’s website at sao.wa.gov for more details on how we serve the public and as always, if you have a question, topic suggestion or other feedback for the Aud Pod, send us an email at ⁠⁠webmaster@sao.wa.gov⁠⁠. Thanks for listening!

By The Numbers: SAO Facts and Figures for Fiscal Year 2025

The Office of the Washington State Auditor was really, really busy in fiscal year 2025 publishing 2,967 audits, fielding 692 submissions to its Citizen Hotline and much more. In this episode of the Aud Pod, the State Auditor’s exclusive podcast, Deputy State Auditor Kelly Collins goes into more detail about those numbers and several more, to provide a fascinating look at the breadth of SAO’s work and community outreach for the year. You may visit SAO’s website at sao.wa.gov for more details on how we serve the public and as always, if you have a question, topic suggestion or other feedback for the Aud Pod, send us an email at ⁠⁠webmaster@sao.wa.gov⁠⁠. Thanks for listening!

SAO Testimonial: Cyber Checkup Service

What do local governments think of the free, award-winning cyber checkup service from the Office of the Washington State Auditor? We asked City of Port Townsend's Network Administrator, David Olsen, that very same question! Hear what he had to say in this episode of the Aud Pod as he shares his thoughts with SAO’s Cybersecurity Specialist, Daniel Mann. David and the City were one of the first local governments to receive our cyber checkup analysis, and he shares valuable insight on the process, results, and whether he’d recommend it to other governments. SAO’s cyber checkups provide a fast, free and independent assessment of a government’s vulnerability to common threats, along with actionable steps to help improve its overall cyber health. The program was recognized with an Excellence in Accountability Award from the National State Auditors Association (NSAA) in 2024 and has helped nearly 100 governments since its inception. You can find more information online at https://sao.wa.gov/becybersmart. As always, if you have a question, topic suggestion or other feedback, send us an email at ⁠⁠webmaster@sao.wa.gov⁠⁠. Thanks for listening!

Fighting fraud in government: How SAO’s efforts help protect public resources

In Washington state, governments lose on average $52,000 per fraud incident. From 2021 through October 2025, the Office of the Washington State Auditor investigated and reported on more than $6 million in misappropriated funds, and reviewed cases totaling another $14 million in cyber-related losses. In his episode of the Aud Pod, we talk with a key player helping lead the fight against fraud in government: Brandi Pritchard, SAO’s Assistant Director of Special Investigations. With 20+ years of experience at SAO, Brandi brings a wealth of expertise and insight to the conversation which explores emerging trends, the types of people that commit fraud, the reasons why they commit fraud, and resources governmentscan use to help detect and deter the misappropriation of public funds. The fraud-prevention resources mentioned in our podcast can be found at https://sao.wa.gov/fraud [https://sao.wa.gov/fraud] As always, if you have a question, topic suggestionor other feedback, send us an email at ⁠webmaster@sao.wa.gov⁠⁠. Thanks for listening!

State Auditor Pat McCarthy radio interview highlights on KONA 610

In October 2025 State Auditor Pat McCarthy stopped by NewsRadio KONA 610 serving the mid-Columbia region of Washington state to appear with hosts Robb Francis and John McKay on their radio program, “The Bottom Line.” This special edition of The Aud Pod features highlights from their wide-ranging discussion covering several areas including: ·        The importance of independent auditing in the role of government ·        Issues and challenges facing auditing shops across the country ·        Auditor McCarthy’s work as President of the National State Auditors Association (NSAA) ·        An overview of how SAO investigates a suspected misuse of public funds ·        SAO’s resources and tools to help local governments run more efficiently and effectively, and detect and deter fraud. You can learn more about the services and resources the Office of the Washington State Auditor offers to help local governments at https://www.sao.wa.gov/improving-government/center-government-innovation As always, if you have a question, topic suggestion or other feedback, send us an email at ⁠⁠webmaster@sao.wa.gov⁠⁠.Thanks for listening!