April 1, 2015

 

Washington State Auditor
Troy Kelley

The Honorable Jay lnslee
Washington State Governor

PO Box 40002

Olympia, WA 98504-0002

RE: Response to your letter dated March 31, 2015

Dear Governor lnslee:

Please ?nd below my responses to the questions you posed to me in your letter of March 31,

2015.

1. What specific. changes have you made in the operation of the Auditor?s Of?ce
since you became aware of the federal investigation to ensure: a) that you are not
involved in any aspect of responding to law enforcement's requests served on
the office; b) that the federal investigation is not disrupting the work of the
office; and e) that the public has confidence in the vital responsibilities of the
office?

a. I immediately removed myself from any official action regarding the

federal investigation. As is our standard practice, the subject of any
request for information is removed from any involvement in the
preparation and production of that request, as would any State
Auditor?s Office employee who is the subject of a public records
request, I was not involved in ful?lling the U.S. Department of Justice
subpoena. I was removed from the process and that situation has not
changed, just as I am removed from the process of responding to public
records requests from the news media on this topic. 

. While the intense media coverage may have been a distraction, there is

no change or impact on our audit and field operations. The
requirements on when we conduct our audits, the standards on how we
conduct our audits and the policies that govern our work continue, as
they have for decades. We have, for example, seen no impact on the
rate of applicants seeking employment opportunities at the Washington
State Auditor?s Office.

We have anecdotal evidence of public disappointment that I am not
able to speak to the media and the public about federal investigators?

Insurance Building, PO Box 40021 Olympia, Washington 98504-002I (360) 902-0370 - TDD Relay (800) 833-6388

 

2.

search of my home and subpoena for certain documents from our
Office. The public comments we have received are not directed at the
Office, our employees, or the excellent work the State Auditor?s Office
is doing. In fact, members of our leadership team report messages of
support and confidence in the job the Office is doing.

Is the federal investigation impacting any of the open or pending audits or
investigations being conducted by the Auditor's Of?ce?
a. No.

Are you aware of any con?icts of interest that you or your staff may have that
may affect the operation of the Auditor?s Office?
a. I am aware of no conflicts of interest that may affect operation of the
Auditor?s Office from the standpoint of audit standards or from the
standpoint of statutory requirements.

Please provide the following information relating to Mr. Jason Jerue: a) the
speci?c dates of his work with the Auditor's Office as an employee. contractor.
or in any other official capacity; his official title, job description, and of?cial
duties: 0) the duration. time. or hours ofhis employment; d) the compensation
paid for his work; and e) copies of all documents or records of any kind that he
produced in conjunction with his work for your office.

a. Jason JeRue began employment with the State Auditor?s Of?ce on
March 11, 2013 and remains an employee of the Office, although he is
currently on requested leave of absence.

b. His position was that of Technical Writer. Documents at the website
link below are responsive to his job description and official duties.

c. He has been a hourly, part-time employee during all ofhis time with
the Of?ce. He began at two hours a day and eventually moved to four
hours a day.

(1. He is currently paid at the rate of $22.68 per hour. In 2013, he was paid
$15,286.40. In 2014, he was paid $22,884.11.

e. In addition to fulfilling all public records requests for all documents
subject to the March 6 federal subpoena, I have directed that those
responsive documents be posted on the State Auditor?s Office website
for public viewing. The documents you request are among those
available at the website: 

I trust these responses are helpful.

Sincerely,

72.7 x. #47
Troy Kelley

Washington State Auditor