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Home My WebLink AboutWA State 2022 Accountability Audit Report Scan to see another great way we’re helping advance #GoodGovernment Accountability Audit Report City of Pasco For the period January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022 Published January 18, 2024 Report No. 1034035 Insurance Building, P.O. Box 40021  Olympia, Washington 98504-0021  (564) 999-0950  Pat.McCarthy@sao.wa.gov Office of the Washington State Auditor Pat McCarthy January 18, 2024 Mayor and City Council City of Pasco Pasco, Washington Report on Accountability Thank you for the opportunity to work with you to promote accountability, integrity and openness in government. The Office of the Washington State Auditor takes seriously our role of providing state and local governments with assurance and accountability as the independent auditor of public accounts. In this way, we strive to help government work better, cost less, deliver higher value and earn greater public trust. Independent audits provide essential accountability and transparency for City operations. This information is valuable to management, the governing body and public stakeholders when assessing the government’s stewardship of public resources. Attached is our independent audit report on the City’s compliance with applicable requirements and safeguarding of public resources for the areas we examined. We appreciate the opportunity to work with your staff and value your cooperation during the audit. Sincerely, Pat McCarthy, State Auditor Olympia, WA Americans with Disabilities In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, we will make this document available in alternative formats. For more information, please contact our Office at (564) 999-0950, TDD Relay at (800) 833-6388, or email our webmaster at webmaster@sao.wa.gov. Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Audit Results ................................................................................................................................... 4 Related Reports ............................................................................................................................... 5 Information about the City .............................................................................................................. 6 About the State Auditor's Office ..................................................................................................... 7 Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 4 AUDIT RESULTS Results in brief This report describes the overall results and conclusions for the areas we examined. In those selected areas, City operations complied, in all material respects, with applicable state laws, regulations, and its own policies, and provided adequate controls over the safeguarding of public resources. In keeping with general auditing practices, we do not examine every transaction, activity, policy, internal control, or area. As a result, no information is provided on the areas that were not examined. About the audit This report contains the results of our independent accountability audit of the City of Pasco from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022. Management is responsible for ensuring compliance and adequate safeguarding of public resources from fraud, loss or abuse. This includes the design, implementation and maintenance of internal controls relevant to these objectives. This audit was conducted under the authority of RCW 43.09.260, which requires the Office of the Washington State Auditor to examine the financial affairs of all local governments. Our audit involved obtaining evidence about the City’s use of public resources, compliance with state laws and regulations and its own policies and procedures, and internal controls over such matters. The procedures performed were based on our assessment of risks in the areas we examined. Based on our risk assessment for the year ended December 31, 2022, the areas examined were those representing the highest risk of fraud, loss, abuse, or noncompliance. We examined the following areas during this audit period: • Cash receipting – timeliness and completeness of deposits at animal shelter • Payroll – gross wages • Procurement – public works and purchases • Compliance with public work projects – change orders • Accounts payable – credit cards • Compliance with state grants – Washington State Department of Revenue – Process Water Reuse Facility and Washington State Department of Transportation – Lewis Street Overpass • Open public meetings – compliance with minutes, meetings and executive session requirements • Financial condition – reviewing for indications of financial distress Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 5 RELATED REPORTS Financial Our opinion on the City’s financial statements and compliance with federal grant program requirements is provided in a separate report, which includes the City’s financial statements. That report is available on our website, http://portal.sao.wa.gov/ReportSearch. Federal grant programs We evaluated internal controls and tested compliance with the federal program requirements, as applicable, for the City’s major federal programs, which are listed in the Schedule of Findings and Questioned Costs section of the separate financial statement and single audit report. That report is available on our website, http://portal.sao.wa.gov/ReportSearch. Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 6 INFORMATION ABOUT THE CITY The City of Pasco, incorporated in 1891, currently serves 80,180 Franklin County citizens. The City provides services including police, fire, Municipal Court, emergency response, parks and recreation, a senior center, a golf course, public works, and planning and economic development. The City also operates a cemetery, a water system, sewer system and an irrigation system. An elected, seven-member Council governs the City. The Council selects one of its members to serve as Mayor. The Council also appoints management to oversee the City’s daily operations and 402 employees. The City had $162 million in revenues and $127 million in expenditures for 2022. Contact information related to this report Address: City of Pasco 525 N. 3rd P.O. Box 293 Pasco, WA 99301 Contact: Darcy Buckley, Finance Director Telephone: (509) 545-3432 Website: www.pasco-wa.gov Information current as of report publish date. Audit history You can find current and past audit reports for the City of Pasco at http://portal.sao.wa.gov/ReportSearch. Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 7 ABOUT THE STATE A UDITOR’S OFFICE The State Auditor’s Office is established in the Washington State Constitution and is part of the executive branch of state government. The State Auditor is elected by the people of Washington and serves four-year terms. We work with state agencies, local governments and the public to achieve our vision of increasing trust in government by helping governments work better and deliver higher value. In fulfilling our mission to provide citizens with independent and transparent examinations of how state and local governments use public funds, we hold ourselves to those same standards by continually improving our audit quality and operational efficiency, and by developing highly engaged and committed employees. As an agency, the State Auditor’s Office has the independence necessary to objectively perform audits, attestation engagements and investigations. Our work is designed to comply with professional standards as well as to satisfy the requirements of federal, state and local laws. The Office also has an extensive quality control program and undergoes regular external peer review to ensure our work meets the highest possible standards of accuracy, objectivity and clarity. Our audits look at financial information and compliance with federal, state and local laws for all local governments, including schools, and all state agencies, including institutions of higher education. In addition, we conduct performance audits and cybersecurity audits of state agencies and local governments, as well as state whistleblower, fraud and citizen hotline investigations. The results of our work are available to everyone through the more than 2,000 reports we publish each year on our website, www.sao.wa.gov. Additionally, we share regular news and other information via an email subscription service and social media channels. We take our role as partners in accountability seriously. The Office provides training and technical assistance to governments both directly and through partnerships with other governmental support organizations. Stay connected at sao.wa.gov • Find your audit team • Request public records • Search BARS Manuals (GAAP and cash), and find reporting templates • Learn about our training workshops and on-demand videos • Discover which governments serve you — enter an address on our map • Explore public financial data with the Financial Intelligence Tool Other ways to stay in touch • Main telephone: (564) 999-0950 • Toll-free Citizen Hotline: (866) 902-3900 • Email: webmaster@sao.wa.gov