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377 stories matching auditor
- The Late-Night Fight That Killed Washington's First University Building
A governor's-office showdown between the state auditor and the university building commission halted construction, left laborers unpaid, and pushed Olympia toward a special legislative session.
- King County Auditor Accused of Padding His Salary with Extra Jobs
A letter to the editor details how Auditor Frank Twichell drew extra pay as purchasing agent, building-fund agent, and legislative lobbyist—all while collecting his regular salary.
- The County's Ledger: A Glimpse into Snohomish Life in 1877
Minutes from the Snohomish County Commissioners reveal a town in transition: new justices, bridge bids, and the quiet bureaucracy of building a community on the edge of the frontier.
- The Sheriff’s Hammer: Snohomish’s Last Stand Against the 'Nuisance'
In March 1877, Judge J.R. Lewis and the local Grand Jury launched a coordinated assault on vice, seizing brothels and fining operators, while simultaneously exposing corruption in county bonds.
- The Judge, the Stenographer, and the $2,000 Bill the County Refused to Pay
A Yakima County water-rights trial dragged on for weeks. When the judge tried to stick taxpayers with the stenographer's tab, the state Supreme Court stepped in and said no.
- The Courthouse War
A fierce battle between a judge and county officials leads to a standoff, a jail sentence, and a wild threat to tear down the jailhouse to free the prisoner.
- The Night Guard Who Got Arrested for Guarding the Courthouse
Mike Driscoll was hired to watch the Benton County courthouse after a suspiciously overheated stove. Prosser’s night policeman took his gun, and the prosecuting attorney had him fined for carrying a concealed weapon.
- The Tide Land Freeze: Ballard’s Waterfront Plats Go to Court
A judge restrains appraisers from filing supplemental tide-land plats as landowners, the state land commission and the county auditor fight over who controls the shore.
- The Books Don't Lie: A County's Debt Fight Comes Down to the Fine Print
A contributed broadside against Stevens County's Democratic commissioners argues that a $14,776 'reduction' in the county debt hides $44,420 in new warrants — and the highest tax take in county history.
- The Ring of Corruption: How King County’s Auditor Hid the Books
A scathing editorial in the Puget Sound Dispatch exposes Gardner Kellogg for refusing to explain thousands of dollars in missing county funds, accusing him of treating public office as private property.
- A Missing Lawyer, a $350 Deed, and the North Olympia Land Scheme
With Attorney D. P. Ballard absent, Olympia lawyers are tracing suspicious transfers in a platted addition—land already sold to dozens of owners, now used as security for a $4,000 mortgage.
- The Auditor's Ledger: A Financial Scandal in Pioneer Seattle
When tax-payers demanded answers about vanishing funds, the county auditor offered only vague excuses—and a newspaper editor called for a total house cleaning.
- The Justice of the Peace Who Sued for His Salary
A local judge successfully challenges the county auditor to secure his own paycheck, signaling a wider struggle over fiscal administration.
- The Foreclosure Auction: Snohomish’s Housing Crisis in 1876
As the Territory of Washington grapples with economic instability, three separate Sheriff's sales are scheduled for January 1877, putting local homes and land on the block for unpaid debts.
- The State Tried to Plat Their Islands
Brawley and Kinnear went to court to stop a state tide-land plat from turning 140 acres of Elliott Bay into lots and streets.
- The Paperwork Error That Challenged Seattle’s Property Claims
A legal dispute over a real estate deed in 1885 reveals how bureaucratic technicalities—specifically a missing county seal—threatened the validity of early land titles in King County.
- The Bizarre Legal Battle for the Benton County Courthouse
A sprawling court fight over the construction contract has pulled in an army of attorneys, stalling the project and complicating the county's civic future.
- The Auditor’s Scathing Reply
A war of words erupts between a Mason County auditor and the Adjutant-General over military duty records.
- No Appropriation, No Warrants: Washington's 1891 Budget Standoff
The state treasurer refuses to honor university and militia warrants the legislature never funded, the Supreme Court backs him up, and Governor Ferry — in poor health — lets the idea of an extra session die.
- The Supreme Court Stops a Judge From Sending Yakima County the Stenographer’s Bill
A superior court judge tried to force the county treasury to pay for trial transcripts. The state Supreme Court said no—and used a rare writ to stop the warrants before they became county debt.
- The Auditor and the Sheriff: A Public Spat Over Corruption
In the lead-up to the 1876 election, a public war of words between King County's Auditor and former Sheriff exposes the messy, opaque, and highly questionable state of territorial bookkeeping.
- The Price of Early Statehood
Fresh from statehood, Washington’s auditor warns of a looming floating debt and a chaotic tax system that left farmers and county officials struggling.
- Overnight Line at the Courthouse as Washington’s New Primary Law Meets Its First Test
Candidates camped outside the Stevens County auditor’s office to file for office—and Newport-area races split three ways before the votes were even cast.
- When Populists Ran the Courthouse, County Warrants Fell to 74 Cents
A cost-cutting order from Whatcom's Populist commissioners has clerks and deputies refusing to obey, while the county's paper warrants slide toward junk.
- County Officials Take Voluntary Pay Cuts to Weather Hard Times
With business stagnant and fees falling off, the auditor and clerk cut their own salaries. Commissioner Heaton wants the treasurer to follow.
Also about this, in other words
- A Community Keeps a Job Open for an Injured Neighbor
When an auditor was sidelined by severe physical injuries, the community and competing candidates moved to ensure he could still earn a living through the office fees.
- The Audit Office Face-Off
A taxpayer stands her ground against a city commissioner over property tax hikes, leaving the local government bureaucrats stunned.
- The Auditor's Ledger: Efficiency and the Salary System
Chehalis County Auditor Geo. W. Boyington defends his record against the backdrop of the transition from fee-based to salaried public service.
- The Fake Auditor of J. Pierpont Morgan
A Seattle hotel swindler successfully impersonates a corporate auditor to extract cash.
- The Auditor's Office Feud
A public spat between the Yakima Herald and Auditor Myron R. Ellis over the hiring of partisan clerks and the outsourcing of county printing contracts.
- The Auditor’s Open Revolt
A defiant Seattle county official squares off against the city’s tax-paying elite, sparking a public war of words in the local press.
- The State's Mounting Red Ink
State Auditor T.M. Reed delivers a scathing biennial report to the legislature, blaming erratic spending and poor revenue laws for a ballooning state debt.
- The Tax Assessors' Cold Shoulder
Washington's county assessors struggle to find a warm place to meet, eventually retreating to the State Auditor's office to set property valuation standards.