NSAA President April Renfro recently welcomed state auditors to Boise, Idaho,for the forty-sixthannual conference of the National State Auditors Association. The conference was held May 21 through 24 and was attended by approximately 230 individuals,including 36 principal state auditors and representation from 34states plus Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands.The conference was preceded on May 21 by a day of meetings of NSAA’s committees and a principals' summit, where the state auditors met to discuss emerging issues.
Technical Agenda & Other Activities
The conference featured general sessions covering a diverse range of topics. Click to see the agenda.
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| State auditors held their annual business meeting on the afternoon of Thursday, May 23. | Incoming NSAA President Doug Ringler presented a plaque of appreciation to outgoing President April Renfro. | |
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| State auditors discussed pressing issues during the closed principal summit on Tuesday, May 21. Right to left: Doug Ringler, April Renfro, Kris Curtis, Pat McCarthy and Jessica Holmes. | 2024-25 Executive Committee (left to right): Doug Ringler, April Renfro, Pat McCarthy, Sherrill Norman and Josh Gallion. Not pictured: Earle Powell and Staci Henshaw. | |
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| Olympic Gold Medalist (pole vaulting) Stacy Dragila shared her story of overcoming challenges and cultivating confidence. | The conference featured attendance from 34 states, plus Northern Mariana Islands (Wilma Atalig-Fejeran from Northern Mariana Islands pictured at left and Puerto Rico's Yesmin Valdivieso in the center). |
Awards
Several awards were presented during the conference.
William R. Snodgrass Distinguished Leadership Award
There were two recipients of this award in 2024:
- Greg Griffin, state auditor of Georgia, was recognized for his noteworthy career, longstanding support of both NSAA and NASACT, his commitment to excellence in government transparency and accountability, and his service to the citizens of the state of Georgia.
- R. Kinney Poynter, NASACT's executive director, was recognized for his many and varied contributions to the state government accountability community overall, andspecifically to the state audit community.
President's Award
Scott Frank, director of IT and Performance Audit with the Washington State Auditors Office, received a President's Award. NSAA President April Renfro cited his innovative thinking, willingness to freely share ideas with peers, and leadership to explore emerging and challenging issues for the states when presenting the award.
Excellence in Accountability Awards
The recipients of this year's Excellence in Accountability Awards gave presentations about their award winning audits and projects on Friday, May 24.
- Large Performance Audit:Maryland Office of the Legislative Auditor –Maryland Department of Health Office of the Secretary and Other Units
- Small Performance Audit:Oregon Department of Audits–Oregon Health Authority- Pharmacy Benefit Managers: Poor Accountability and Transparency Harm Medicaid Patients and Independent Pharmacies
- Special Project: Washington Office of the State Auditor –Cyber Checkups
- Forensic Report: Ohio Office of the State Auditor –Vinton Township
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| NSAA President April Renfro honored two recipients of the William R. Snodgrass Distinguished Leadership Award at the conference: Kinney Poynter (left) and Greg Griffin (right). | Scott Frank with the Washington State Auditor's Office was recognized for his leadership in the performance audit community, among other accomplishments, with a 2024 President's Award. | |
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| The Maryland Office of Legislative Auditor received the large category Excellence in Accountability Award. Left to right: James Podhorniak, April Renfro, Greg Hook and Josh Adler. | Richard Blakesly accepted on behalf of the Ohio State Auditor's Office for the office's forensic report called "Vinton Township: A Wildebeest, Tigers and Cy Oh My." | |
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| Oregon's Audit Department received the small category award for their audit on pharmacy benefit managers. Left to right: April Renfro, Ian Green, Kip Memmott, Kathy Davis andWendy Kam. | Washington State Auditor's Office was honored with an award in the special project category for their project "Cyber Checkups." Left to right: Daniel Mann, April Renfro, Pat McCarthy and Debbie Pennick. |
Business Meeting
On Thursday, members of NSAA held a business meeting where they heard reports from each standing committee and elected a new Executive Committee. The Executive Committee for 2024-25 will be:
- President: DougRingler, Auditor General,Michigan
- President-Elect: Pat McCarthy, State Auditor, Washington
- Secretary/Treasurer: Earle Powell, Director, Legislative Audit Council, South Carolina
- Immediate Past President: AprilRenfro, Legislative Auditor, Idaho
- Sherrill Norman, Auditor General, Florida
- Josh Gallion, State Auditor, North Dakota
- Staci Henshaw, Auditor of Public Accounts, Virginia
Several resolutions were approved by members at the business meeting:
- Thanking President Renfro for her service and for hosting the conference.
- Commending Greg Hook, legislative auditor of Maryland, for a long and distinguished career and wishing him well upon his forthcoming retirement.
- Wishing Clark Chapin, former state auditor of Connecticut, well upon his retirement.
- Wishing Mike Harmon, former state auditor of Kentucky, well upon his retirement.
- Wishing Beth Wood, former state auditor of North Carolina, well upon the end of her tenure.
Acknowledgments
NSAA wishes to thank all those who helped with the conference, especially April Renfro for hosting and all those who spoke or served as moderators. Active involvement by the state audit community is the reason for that: thanks to all who participated and attended.
Last but not least, thanks to this year’s conference sponsors:
