About The Auditor's Office
Our Goals and Objectives

• Provide excellent customer service both to the public and to the county departments and special purpose
  districts

• To incorporate the needs of our customers, citizens, private companies and county departments in defining cost-saving efficiencies in county government

• To provide easier accessibility of records and information through means of updated technology

• To produce the Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports in an accurate and timely manner as required by
  State and Federal law; to provide for a successful implementation of GASB 34

• Identify and support training issues within the office and to meet the changing needs of each Division’s core
  services

ADMINISTRATION: COUNTY AUDITOR (R.C.W. 36.22)
Accounting • Elections • Licensing • Records

The duties and responsibilities of the County Auditor cover a large and varied field which largely include delivering public services and acting in the public’s best interest.  The County Auditor is charged with legal and fiduciary responsibilities for oversight and management of the electoral process, records management and preservation,
licensing services and financial services.  These duties each require knowledge in many different areas so that the
office can run efficiently and effectively.

OBJECTIVES

1.      Provide support and direction to 18 full-time staff members and carry out the duties and responsibilities
mandated by state law for the various departments that the Auditor oversees.

Perform and carry out administration functions within the office which include supervising personnel and
administering evaluations, conducting departmental meetings, creating and

submitting departmental budgets and working to enhance communications between the public and other
County departments.  Provide training and professional development that strengthen our ability to provide
quality public service and quality service to other County departments  ($282,305)

2.      Attend and actively participate in Washington State Association of County Auditors (WSACA) conferences, workshops and legislative activities ($4,167)

3.      Actively participate in the legislative session by attending hearings and providing testimony on legislation
affecting my organization and divisions ($1,240)

4.      Renewing subscriptions and dues to various organizations to stay current with changes and new legislation
on a local, state and federal level ($2,492)

The clients of the Auditor’s Office Accounting/Finance sections include the other offices, departments and special districts within the county.  The financial functions of the Auditor’s Office must balance its oversight role
(complying the federal and state regulations) with meeting the financial needs of the county offices and departments.  The Auditor oversees Accounts Payable, Payroll and Fiscal Accounting.

The Accounts Payable division’s audit function provides an independent and impartial review of invoices for
legitimate expenditures of County funds.  Once the auditing function is completed, the Accounts Payable division processes warrants for payment of the invoices processed for that time period.  

OBJECTIVES: 

1.      Administration and timely production of claims warrants for payment of invoices submitted by county
departments as required by statute and county policy ($231,489)

2.      Successfully implement PeopleSoft upgrade in payables to version 7.51 ($4,038)

3.      Continued implementation of the PeopleSoft financial system, which will assist county departments with
accounts payables ($12,112)

4.      Produce monthly financial reports on-line for departments in a timely manner ($7,074)

5.      Complete development of a standardized accounts payable manual to be distributed to all County departments
for gradual integration into present county policies and procedures ($7,282)

6.      Provide training and professional development in PeopleSoft financial systems and attend

WSACA sponsored Finance conferences ($7,336).
 

The Payroll division is responsible for the production of the county payroll, processing the related transactions and reports and generation of county employee pay checks.  This division works closely with the State Department of Retirement, Social Security Administration, Employment Security Department and the Internal Revenue Service. 

OBJECTIVES:

1.      Administration and accurate production of salary warrants for county employees and other special districts and processing the related transactions and reports to State and Federal entities as required by statute and county
policy ($136,687)

2.   Successfully implement PeopleSoft upgrade in payroll to version 7.51 ($4,076)

3.      Issue and receive pay sheets electronically from other County departments ($6,074)

4.      Continued implementation of the PeopleSoft financial system, which will assist county departments with
payroll ($8,074)

5.      Provide training and professional development in PeopleSoft financial systems and attend

WSACA sponsored Finance conferences ($13,338)

Services provided by the Fiscal Accounting division of the Auditor’s Office include general ledger accounting,
financial statement development, assistance in preparation and monitoring of county budget, fixed assets and grant accounting and analysis as well as the liaison for the annual audit conducted by the State Auditor’s Office.

OBJECTIVES:

1.      Produce a clean and timely Comprehensive Annual Financial Report and strive to receive

the Certificate of Achievement in Financial Reporting from GFOA ($237,704)

2.      Create an interface to allow for the integration of accounting systems between PeopleSoftin the Auditor’s
Office and TIMS in the Treasurer’s Office ($13,000)

3.      Provide professional accounting services to the other County departments and assist in grants
management ($61,240)

4.      Assist County departments with special projects as needed and as staff time allows ($2,000)

5.      Provide training and professional development in PeopleSoft financial systems and attend

WSACA and GFOA sponsored Finance conferences ($11,050)

Elections is a highly visible function of the Auditor that receives much public scrutiny.  The County Auditor is
ex-officio supervisor of all primary, general and special elections within the County and is the chief registrar of
voters for all precincts in the county under R.C.W. Title 29A.  The responsibility for elections is two-fold: 
Election administration and voter registration processing and maintenance.

In correlation with election duties, the Auditor is in charge of candidate filing; ballot ordering, layout, processing
and counting; maintenance and operation of voting system; issuing absentee ballots; polling place acquisition, accessibility, equipment and supplies; producing poll books; poll worker assignments and training; publishing
required legal notices; filing Public Disclosure documents; election returns tabulation, reporting and certification; conducting election recounts, tracking election costs and billing election costs to jurisdictions; Canvassing Board responsibilities; record retention and publishing a Local Voters Pamphlet.

The duties and responsibilities of the Election Department include all aspects of conducting elections for the county
and special purpose districts.  The Elections Department is charged with processing voter registration information, administering elections according to the laws and administrative rules of the State of Washington and all duties
related to these responsibilities.

OBJECTIVES

1. Increase of voter/citizen contact opportunities to educate the public regarding the importance of voting and the election process.  Both programs are designed to use partnerships between the department and trained volunteers.

a)      Public speaking – seek opportunities to speak to groups, organizations and fraternities about
current election technology, accountability and Washington laws.  ($560)

b)      Voting Is Cool – Program launched by the Secretary of State to reach school age children. It
has been found if elementary students are educated about voting, this information trickles up
to the parents.   ($3,647)

2.  Expanding information sources to disseminate accurate information to the public.

           a)      Refining and expanding the website will give the public consistent and immediate information. Using
the web has decreased the number of staff needed during an election to answer questions of the media and public
as well as provide a 24-hour information source.  Staff time will be needed to upgrade and make the website
easier to use, as well as integrate a search function.  ($14,595)

            b)      The "Local Voters Pamphlet", published electronically for primaries and printed in conjunction with the State Voters Pamphlet for general elections, requires one staff member’s attention for 1.5 months each year. It is possible to reduce staff time on this project by using an upgraded system of technology and expanding the training
of the staff person.  ($30,449)

            c)      E-mail ballot outreach for service voters will provide a higher rate of overseas, out-of-state and military voters by sending them a special absentee ballot via electronic mail.  The indicator of success of this program will
be the percentage of these voters requesting and responding to this type of ballot. ($96)

3.  Increasing contact with non-registered citizens using two programs:

            a)   Young Voter Registration--demographically the age group 18 to 35 participate least in the voting
process.  The focus will be on a cooperative teaching program at LCC and the county high schools to inform
young adults about voting and registering to vote and create a level of comfort with the election process.  ($3,330)

            b)      Kids Vote at the Fair –Already in place, the vote for the fair mascot has created a successful platform
for teaching children the power of the vote, how candidates campaign.  It is the objective to also interact with
adults, therefore this program will not only be expanded, but will be moved to a more public location in the fair to permit greater contact with voting age people.  ($3,195)

4.    Reduce cost of ballot production (currently 2.25 weeks of the supervisor’s and deputies' time) by increased accuracy of designing ballots.  Installation of UNITY, a computer program, will assist in designing the ballots, and results in a reduction of proof reading and errors plus faster delivery of the printed ballots and the tabulation
program.  Additional time will be needed for the initial set-up and proofing.  ($3,064)

5.    Interlinking of related lists and databases to assist in maintaining the many lists of officials, registered voters, etc. required by RCW 29. As a cost / time savings measure, the department is currently designing integrated lists and programs to reduce the time spent maintaining this information.  This analysis requires personnel time, and some additional training.  ($1,100) 

6.    Uses of technology to provide public assess to historical election records.  Records such as those of past
elected officials, election results, and issues from the past are currently scattered throughout election files.
Efficiency will be gained in not having to research on a case-by-case basis.  ($2,053) 

7.    Survey each polling site as to ADA compliance (RCW 29.57).   This was last done in 1988 and is again
the focus of concern, spearheaded by the National Task Force of Elections Accessibility.  ($1,430)  

8.      Actively participate in the legislative session by attending hearings and providing testimony and input on
legislation, as well as serve on committees for the Secretary of State in drafting WACs.  ($2,009) 

9.   Attend and actively support certification and training of staff as election administrators as prescribed
by RCW 29.60.040 and WAC 434-260. As a cost-effective measure, the department will design training
programs for poll workers, party observers and volunteers. ($9,993) 

10.  Conduct redistricting of county precincts and jurisdictions for 54,000 registered voters for 2002, in
accordance with RCW 29.70, including issuing new precinct boundaries and maps.  The project is jointly
conducted with the GIS department.  ($11,171) 

11.  Provide support and direction to 3 full-time staff members to carry out the duties and responsibilities
of the department in a timely and efficient manner.  ($34,868) 

12.  Conduct local and state elections for county and special purpose jurisdiction in full compliance with state
laws in a full accountable and accurate manner. ($453,989) 

13.  Assist county citizens in voter registration and obtaining registration assistance.  Process, maintain and
compile voter registration data for 54,000 voters, within the scope of the law, on an ongoing basis.  Make
available public information in a timely manner when requested for political purposes.  ($161,963)

The County Auditor is an agent for the State Department of Licensing (DOL) charged with the issuing of titles and registrations for vehicles or vessels.  When approved by DOL, the Auditor subcontracts with private businesses
called subagents, to perform these duties on behalf of the Auditor and DOL.  The Auditor’s Office appoints the subagents and oversees the subagent functions ensuring the compliance with statute, policies, procedures and directives.  Statutes for title and registration of vehicles and vessels can be found in R.C.W. Title 46 with tax
references in R.C.W. Title 82.

Licensing functions are processed on-line through DOL Vehicle Field System.  Responsibilities not only
encompasses the sale of motor vehicle and vessel licenses and collection of license fees, but also the transfer of
vehicles and vessels from one owner to another, title changes to add or delete a legal owner other than the
registered owner, collection of load fees on trucks and other transactions involving motor vehicles and vessels. 
The Auditor is also an agent for the Department of Revenue and collects sales taxes on transfers of such vehicles
made between individuals. 

OBJECTIVES: 

1.      Enforce State Department of Licensing’s (DOL) procedures and rules and carry out the duties and
functions required by statute and administrative code ($353,198)

2.      Keep current on DOL’s changing requirements by attending DOL training and WSACA

sponsored conferences ($1,814)

3.      Improve customer service and relations between agencies and the public ($4,000)

4.      Continue cross-training of licensing and recording cashiers to provide for better

coverage during absences($4,000)

5.      Provide better training and direction to County’s two licensing subagents ($3,000)

6.      Install computer and printer in Licensing’s lobby for the public to utilize for Internet renewal transactions
(FORM I – $2,475)

The Auditor is also charged with issuing and maintaining records of marriages. 

OBJECTIVES:

1.        Issue and maintain marriage license and certificate information, record and forward original state forms to
State Department of Vital Statistics and record for historical purposes ($48,321)

2.    Improve the efficiency of the marriage licensing process by utilizing updated technology and software to
expedite the process and provide professional looking marriage forms($6,845)

3.      Continue project of scanning and indexing marriage license and marriage certificates into CRIS+ imaging
system to provide for quicker access to historical marriage records
(AUDITOR’S O&M FUND –Extra Help $3,633 for 2002 and $3,750 in 2003)

The County Auditor is responsible for maintaining a permanent and archival copy of all documents submitted for recording and for providing public access to those records.

Documents recorded by the Auditor include, but are not limited to; deeds, real estate contracts, liens and other
written instruments, which are required by law to be filed in the county.  The records become public upon filing
and are indexed accordingly.   The Auditor handles many requests for copies of various instruments and, when
certified by the Auditor, these documents are admissible in courts of law.  

OBJECTIVES:

1.      Record, maintain and preserve all legal documents recorded in Cowlitz County as required

by statute and administrative code and assist the public with document searches and prepare copies as
requested ($263,398)

2.      Keep current on changing legislation affecting the recording of legal documents by attending

WSACA sponsored recording conferences ($2,743)

3.      Maintain hardware equipment for scanning images into CRIS+ imaging system and perform

preventative maintenance or repair as needed ($4,295)

4.      Purchase a server and software to allow for the recording index and images to be on the Internet with search capabilities (AUDITOR’S O&M FUND – Prof Svcs $25,000 for 2003)

5.      Complete conversion of film to compact disc and index into CRIS system

(AUDITOR’S O&M FUND – Direct Labor/Benef $12,918 in 2002 and $13,286 in 2003)

6.      Purchase new digital reader-printer for better access of historical records on film

(AUDITOR’S O&M FUND – Machinery Equip $10,518 in 2002)

7.      Purchase a digital plotter to automate system of printing maps and surveys which will enhance final product
to customer and allow for better use of staff time
(AUDITOR’S O&M FUND – Machinery Equip $6,275 in 2002)

Auditor's Miscellaneous Duties:

• Serves as secretary of the County Finance Committee

• Serves as recording officer for City Selection Committee in Air Pollution Authority Districts

• Serves as member of Judicial Districting Committee