Audit finds issues with assessor's office

EPHRATA — A pair of state audits has found continued problems in the Grant County Assessor’s Office and in the way the county keeps its books.

“Our prior two audits covering fiscal 2014 and 2015 identified a lack of monitoring over exemptions, personal property, assessment data and construction in progress,” according to the report, published on July 23.

“The Assessor’s Office continues to lack adequate independent monitoring or review over key systems to verify accurate and timely reporting,” the report said.

In its most recent audit, the State Auditor’s Office concluded that Grant County Assessor Melissa McKnight’s office was still using 2013 valuation tables in 2017, failed to keep “adequate documentation” to support its re-evaluation schedule, and did not have a process to review personal property values or tax exemptions.

“No one independently reviewed staff entry or approval of either personal property values of property tax exemptions into the tax software, which increased the likelihood of error,” the audit states. “Additionally, it is possible for personnel to enter data related to personal or family businesses,” the auditors concluded. “Without an adequate review process, potential conflicts of interest would not be detected.”

“We regularly audit Grant County,” said Kathleen Cooper, a spokeswoman for the Washington State Auditor’s Office. “We do a risk-based audit, and take a look at some of the areas that might be at higher risk.”

Cooper said because the state found problems with the assessor’s office in 2014 and 2015, it continues to examine the assessor’s ways and means of doing business.

“If there’s a previous finding, we’re required to do a follow up,” she said.

The audit, which covers Jan. 1, 2016, through Dec. 31, 2017, did not accuse McKnight or anyone in the assessor’s office of any wrongdoing or conflict of interest.

However, the report said that because of the problems auditors identified in the Assessor’s Office, there is “a risk that the County inequitably assessed tax on property owners.”

“This risk is amplified because of the lack of controls over timely assessments of new construction, implementation of current cost tables, and entries of property-tax exemptions and personal-property values,” the report said.

Auditors recommend the county use “up-to-date cost tables,” document all valuations, independently review all data entered into the county’s computer system, and to allow the state’s Department of Revenue “to perform useful calculations during its reviews.”

“I am up to date,” McKnight told the Columbia Basin Herald. “We have met all their recommendations. I feel pretty good about that.”

McKnight said she is in the midst of a six-year plan to re-evaluate property values across Grant County. The county is split into six regions, with a different region undergoing a thorough examine and revaluation each year.

“We’ve got three more years to get a full cycle,” she said.

McKnight also said her office has instituted more internal audits of individual valuators and data entry clerks, as well as pulling all outlying property valuations out for multiple reviews.

In a second report, which covers all of 2016, the state auditor found that the county’s financial statements “were inadequate to ensure accurate and complete reporting.”

The audit found that Grant County “(u)underreported revenue and expenditures by an estimated $1.1 million and $3.5 million respectively,” overstated its ending cash balance by $212,000, understated liabilities for closing the landfill by roughly $18.8 million, over-stated and incorrectly reported about $5 million worth of spending, and did not have adequate documentation to support adjustments from prior years.

“In addition,” the audit continues, “our audit identified a large number of errors on the financial statements that were not individually significant but, when taken together, impaired the understandability of the financial reports.”

The state auditor recommended “adequate time and training” for the county’s accountants, as well as increased monitoring and review of the accounting practices.

“We are currently in balance with the treasurer’s office and can identify timing issues,” the county responded in the report. “A detailed process for a secondary review of financial statements has been put into place.”

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached via email at countygvt@columbiabasinherald.com