State Auditor of Missouri
Seal of the State Auditor of Missouri
Incumbent
Scott Fitzpatrick
since January 9, 2023
TypeState Auditor
Term length4 years
Formation1820
First holderWilliam Christy
WebsiteMissouri State Auditor's Office Website

The state auditor of Missouri is an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of government of the U.S. state of Missouri. Thirty-eight individuals have occupied the office of state auditor since statehood. The incumbent is Scott Fitzpatrick, a Republican.

Election and qualification

The state auditor serves a four-year term, and is the only state executive branch official elected in even-numbered non-presidential election years. To be eligible for the office of state auditor, a candidate must meet the same eligibility requirements prescribed for the governor.[1]

Powers and duties

The state auditor is charged by Article IV, Section 13 of the Missouri Constitution with supervising and auditing the receipt and expenditure of public funds and prescribing appropriate systems of accounts for all public offices, be they state agencies or local governments. In relation to the aforesaid local governments, the same constitutional provisions also require the state auditor to supervise their budgeting systems.[2] In accordance with this mandate, the state auditor conducts financial and performance audits for approximately 200 state agencies, boards, and commissions, and the state's judicial branch.[3][4][5] The state auditor also audits counties, cities, school districts, and other political subdivisions at the auditor's initiative, whenever they lack an external auditor, or when requested by citizen petition.[6][7]

Missouri's state auditor is one of only four elected auditors in the United States whose core responsibilities are codified in the state constitution. The other state auditors to which this phenomenon applies are the auditors in New York, Utah, and Washington.

Recent history

The office was temporarily held by John Watson after Tom Schweich, who was elected in 2010 and reelected in 2014, died on February 26, 2015. Nicole Galloway was appointed by Governor Jay Nixon to fill the office on a permanent basis until the 2018 election, effective on April 27, 2015, and was subsequently elected to a full term.[8] Scott Fitzpatrick was elected as State Auditor in 2022, and took office on January 9, 2023.

List of State Auditors of Missouri

#NamePartyTermCounty
1William ChristyDemocratic-Republican1820–1821St. Louis
2William V. RectorDemocratic-Republican1821–1823St. Louis, MO
3Elias BarcroftDemocratic-Republican1823–1833St. Louis
4Henry ShurldsDemocratic1833–1835Washington
5Peter Garland GloverDemocratic1835–1837Callaway
6Hiram H. BaberDemocratic1837–1845Cole
7William MonroeDemocratic1845Morgan
8James W. McDearmonDemocratic1845–1848St. Charles
9George W. MillerDemocratic1848–1849Cole
10Wilson BrownDemocratic1849–1852Cape Girardeau
11Abraham FulkersonDemocratic1852Cole
12William H. BuffingtonDemocratic1853–1861Cole
13W. S. MoseleyDemocratic1861–1865New Madrid
14Alonzo ThompsonRepublican1865–1869Nodaway
15Daniel DraperRepublican1869–1873Montgomery
16George Boardman ClarkDemocratic1873–1875Washington
17Thomas HollodayDemocratic1875–1881Madison
18John WalkerDemocratic1881–1889Howard
19James Monroe SeibertDemocratic1889–1901Cape Girardeau
20Albert Otis AllenDemocratic1901–1905New Madrid
21William Werner WilderRepublican1905–1909Ste. Genevieve
22John Pemberton GordonDemocratic1909–1917Lafayette
23George Ernst HackmanRepublican1917–1925Warren
24Lorenzo Dow ThompsonRepublican1925–1933Callaway
25Forrest SmithDemocratic1933–1949Ray
26W. H. HolmesDemocratic1949–1953Maries
27Haskell HolmanDemocratic1953–1971Randolph
28Christopher BondRepublican1971–1973Audrain
29John AshcroftRepublican1973–1975Greene
30George W. LehrDemocratic1975–1977Jackson
31Thomas M. KeyesDemocratic1977–1978Jackson
32James AntonioRepublican1978–1984Cole
33Margaret B. KellyRepublican1984–1999Cole
34Claire McCaskillDemocratic1999–2007Jackson
35Susan MonteeDemocratic2007–2011Buchanan
36Tom SchweichRepublican2011–2015St. Louis
37John WatsonDemocratic2015Cole
38Nicole GallowayDemocratic2015–2023Boone
39Scott FitzpatrickRepublican2023–present

References

  1. ↑ "Article IV, Section 13, State of Missouri Constitution" (PDF). Office of the Missouri Secretary of State. p. 65. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Article IV, Section 13, State of Missouri Constitution" (PDF). Office of the Missouri Secretary of State. p. 65. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
  3. ↑ "29.185, Revised Statutes of Missouri". Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  4. ↑ "29.200, Revised Statutes of Missouri". Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  5. ↑ "29.236, Revised Statutes of Missouri". Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  6. ↑ "29.205, Revised Statutes of Missouri". Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  7. ↑ "29.230, Revised Statutes of Missouri". Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  8. ↑ Nixon picks Boone County treasurer for state auditor job (St, Louis Post-Dispatch article-April 15, 2015)
  • Official Manual, State of Missouri, 2005–2006.
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