Preparing for a Performance Audit

You've read about the scathing performance audit on the Port of Seattle's construction management and contracting program that was conducted by the Washington State Auditor's Office. When will your agency receive it's performance audit? How can you prepare for it? What lessons can you learn from the Port's experience and the experience of other public agencies?

On April 1, 2008, the American Public Works Association's Washington State Chapter will sponsor a training session on Performance Audits that will feature speakers from the State Auditor's Office, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) who was recently audited (click here for WSDOT's audit), and a consultant who participated in WSDOT's audit.

The training will be from 9:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. in Ocean Shores, Washington at the Ocean Shores Convention Center. The cost is $50, which includes lunch.

The registration deadline is March 24th. There are currently only 29 spaces remaining. Maximum attendance is 100. Visit APWA's website for more information and to register online.

Initiative 900, which became effective in December 2005, requires the State Auditor ‘s Office (SAO) to conduct independent, comprehensive performance audits of state and local government, provides a funding source for the audits and urges the SAO to start with the largest, costliest government entities and eventually audit all 2,700 governmental agencies. It also specifies that performance audits be conducted in accordance with Government Auditing Standards, which are issued by the United States Government Accountability Office.

Each performance audit is to include, but not be limited to the following nine objectives:

1. Identification of cost savings.
2. Identification of services that can be reduced or eliminated.
3. Identification of programs or services that can be transferred to the private sector.
4. Analysis of gaps or overlaps in programs or services and recommendations to correct them.
5. Feasibility of pooling the entity’s information technology systems.
6. Analysis of the roles and functions of the entity and recommendations to change or eliminate roles or functions.
7. Recommendations for statutory or regulatory changes that may be necessary for the entity to properly carry out its functions.
8. Analysis of the entity’s performance data, performance measures and self-assessment systems.
9. Identification of best practices.

The SAO has conducted at least nine performance audits since 2005.