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Home My WebLink AboutWA State 2020 Accountability Audit Report Exit Conference: City of Pasco The Office of the Washington State Auditor’s vision is increased trust in government. Our mission is to provide citizens with independent and transparent examinations of how state and local governments use public funds, and develop strategies that make government more efficient and effective. The purpose of this meeting is to share the results of your audit and our draft reporting. We value and appreciate your participation. Audit Reports We will publish the following reports:  Accountability audit for January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020 - see draft report. Status of Prior Management Letter items Brief Description Resolved Unresolved Cash receipting – Golf Course X Finalizing Your Audit Report Publication Audit reports are published on our website and distributed via e-mail in an electronic .pdf file. We also offer a subscription service that allows you to be notified by email when audit reports are released or posted to our website. You can sign up for this convenient service at: https://portal.sao.wa.gov/SAOPortal. Management Representation Letter We have included a copy of representations requested of management. Audit Cost At the entrance conference, we estimated the cost of the audit to be $33,570 and actual audit costs will approximate that amount. Your Next Scheduled Audit Your next audit is scheduled to be conducted in April 2022 and will cover the following general areas:  Accountability for Public Resources  Financial Statement [including Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Opinion Letter]  Federal Programs Page 1 of 11 The estimated cost for the next audit based on current rates is $98,875 plus travel expenses. This preliminary estimate is provided as a budgeting tool and not a guarantee of final cost. Working Together to Improve Government Audit Survey When your report is released you will receive an audit survey from us. We value your opinions on our audit services and hope you provide feedback. Local Government Support Team This team provides support services to local governments through technical assistance, comparative statistics, training, and tools to help prevent and detect a loss of public funds. Our website and client portal offers many resources, including a client Help Desk that answers auditing and accounting questions. Additionally this team assists with the online filing of your financial statements. The Center for Government Innovation The Center for Government Innovation of the Office of the Washington State Auditor is designed to offer services specifically to help you help the residents you serve at no additional cost to your government. What does this mean? We provide expert advice in areas like Lean, peer-to-peer networking and culture-building to help local governments find ways to be more efficient, effective and transparent. The Center can help you by providing assistance in financial management, cybersecurity and more. Check out our best practices and other resources that help local governments act on accounting standard changes, comply with regulations, and respond to recommendations in your audit. The Center understands that time is your most precious commodity as a public servant, and we are here to help you do more with the limited hours you have. If you are interested in learning how we can help you maximize your effect in government, call us at (564) 999-0818 or email us at Center@sao.wa.gov. Questions? Please contact us with any questions about information in this document or related audit reports. Kelly Collins, CPA, Director of Local Audit, (564) 999-0807, Kelly.Collins@sao.wa.gov Tina Watkins, CPA, Assistant Director of Local Audit, (360) 260-6411 Tina.Watkins@sao.wa.gov Ginny Waltman, Audit Manager, (509) 734-7104, Ginny.Waltman@sao.wa.gov Debbie O’Leary, CFE, Assistant Audit Manager (509) 581-3973, Deborah.O’Leary@sao.wa.gov Page 2 of 11 Find out what’s new at SAO by scanning this code with your smartphone’s camera Published (Inserted by OS) Report No. 1029104 Accountability Audit Report City of Pasco For the period January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020 Page 3 of 11 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 Issue Date – (Inserted by OS) 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. Page 4 of 11 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 Page 5 of 11 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, 2020 through December 31, 2020. 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, 2020, the areas examined were those representing the highest risk of fraud, loss, abuse, or noncompliance. We examined the following areas during this audit period:  Procurement – public works and professional services  Compliance with public works projects – change orders  Payroll – gross wages and overtime  Accounts payable – general disbursements and credit cards  Tracking and monitoring of theft sensitive assets, such as computers, ammunition and firearms  Golf course – establishment of new lease agreement  Police department – property or evidence room  Contract compliance – cash receipting and deposit timeliness Page 6 of 11 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 program, which is 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. Page 7 of 11 Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 6 INFORMATION ABOUT THE CITY The City of Pasco, incorporated in 1891, currently serves about 77,000 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 about 380 employees. The City had about $118.7 million in expenditures for 2020. Contact information related to this report Address: City of Pasco 525 N. 3rd P.O. Box 293 Pasco, WA 99301 Contact: Richa Sigdel, Finance Director Telephone: (509) 545-3488 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. Page 8 of 11 Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 7 ABOUT THE STATE AUDITOR’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 Page 9 of 11 Page 10 of 11 Page 11 of 11