HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity of Port Townsend 2018 & 2019 Accountability Audit Report
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Published April 5, 2021
Report No. 1027958
Accountability Audit Report
City of Port Townsend
For the period January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2019
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
April 5, 2021
Mayor and City Council
City of Port Townsend
Port Townsend, 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 Port
Townsend from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2019.
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 years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, the areas examined
were those representing the highest risk of fraud, loss, abuse, or noncompliance. We examined the
following areas during this audit period:
• Compliance with Fort Worden Public Development Authority interlocal agreement
terms
• Procurement – public works and purchases
• Accounts payable – electronic funds transfers
• Financial condition
• Self-insurance for unemployment
Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 5
RELATED REPORTS
Financial
Our opinion on the City’s financial statements 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.
Office of the Washington State Auditor sao.wa.gov Page 6
INFORMATION ABOUT THE CITY
The City of Port Townsend serves 9,485 citizens in Jefferson County. The City provides an array
of services including water, sewer, storm drainage, police, parks and recreation, planning, street
maintenance and construction, library and general administrative services. The City contracts for
fire protection, court, jail and emergency medical services. A private company provides solid
waste collection services.
An elected, seven-member Council governs the City. The Council appoints a Manager to oversee
the City’s daily operations and approximately 130 employees in 2019. The City's operating
revenues were approximately $31.8 million in fiscal year 2019.
Contact information related to this report
Address:
City of Port Townsend
250 Madison Street, Suite 1
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Contact: Nora Mitchell, Finance Director
Telephone: 360-379-4403
Website: www.cityofpt.us
Information current as of report publish date.
Audit history
You can find current and past audit reports for the City of Port Townsend at
http://portal.sao.wa.gov/ReportSearch.
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.
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