Twenty-seven individuals have held the office of state auditor since statehood.
This activity entails collecting payroll and withheld federal income taxes from personnel, coordinating deposits with the IRS and Social Security Administration, and filing W-2s.
Over the course of the payroll cycle, the state auditor's office audits payroll data maintained by state agencies and over 700 political subdivisions, including counties, cities, school districts, townships, and water districts.
Financial, compliance, and performance audits of state agencies and local governments are instead the responsibility of the Department of Legislative Audit, which is led by an auditor general appointed by the legislature.
[8] In this sense, the state auditor's office performs a function similar to that carried out by accounts payable departments in the private sector.