Do you know who's on your ballot this fall? Millions don't. We're racing to change that before Election Day. Click here to donate today.
Hawaii State Auditor
| Hawaii Auditor | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Nonpartisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Compensation: | Unavailable |
| Term limits: | None |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | 8 years |
| Authority: | Hawaii Constitution, Article VII, Section 10 |
| Selection Method: | Appointed by the Hawaii State Legislature |
| Current Officeholder(s) | |
Hawaii State Auditor
Les Kondo | |
| Other Hawaii Executive Offices | |
| Governor•Lieutenant Governor•Attorney General•Director of Finance•Auditor•Superintendent of Education•Agriculture Commissioner•Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs•Chairperson of Land and Natural Resources•Director of Labor and Industrial Relations•Public Utilities Commission | |
The Hawaii Auditor is a constitutionally created position in the Hawaii state government. The state auditor is appointed by the state legislature to a term of eight years. It is the constitutional duty of the state auditor to conduct post-audits of the transactions, accounts, programs and performance of all departments, offices and agencies of the state and its political subdivisions.[1]
Current officeholder
The current Hawaii State Auditor is Les Kondo (nonpartisan). Kondo assumed office in 2016.
Authority
The position of auditor was created in 1950 by Article VII, Section 10 of the Hawaii Constitution.[2]
Hawaii Constitution, Article VII, Section 10 (dead link)
|
The legislature, by a majority vote of each house in joint session, shall appoint an auditor who shall serve for a period of eight years and thereafter until a successor shall have been appointed. The legislature, by a two-thirds vote of the members in joint session, may remove the auditor from office at any time for cause. |
Qualifications
There are no specific qualifications to hold the office of Hawaii State Auditor.
Appointments
"The legislature, by a majority vote of each house in joint session, shall appoint an auditor who shall serve for a period of eight years and thereafter until a successor shall have been appointed. The legislature, by a two-thirds vote of the members in joint session, may remove the auditor from office at any time for cause."[3]
Vacancies
The auditor shall serve until a successor is appointed. A two thirds vote of the members of the joint session may remove the auditor from office at any time for cause.[4]
Duties
The duties of the state auditor are specified in the Hawaii Constitution Article VII, Section 10.
| Text of Section 10:
Auditor The legislature, by a majority vote of each house in joint session, shall appoint an auditor who shall serve for a period of eight years and thereafter until a successor shall have been appointed. The legislature, by a two-thirds vote of the members in joint session, may remove the auditor from office at any time for cause. It shall be the duty of the auditor to conduct post-audits of the transactions, accounts, programs and performance of all departments, offices and agencies of the State and its political subdivisions, to certify to the accuracy of all financial statements issued by the respective accounting officers and to report the auditor's findings and recommendations to the governor and to the legislature at such times as shall be provided by law. The auditor shall also make such additional reports and conduct such other investigations as may be directed by the legislature. |
Divisions
Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for information that describes the divisions (if any exist) of a state executive office. That information for the Hawaii State Auditor has not yet been added. After extensive research we were unable to identify any relevant information on state official websites. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, please email us.
Budget
- See also: Hawaii state budget and finances
The Office of the State Auditor did not appear as a line item in the fiscal year 2026 budget. If you have information related to the budget for this office, please email us and let us know.
Compensation
- See also: Compensation of state executive officers
The salaries of elected and appointed executives in Hawaii are determined by the Hawaii Commission on Salaries, which was established by constitutional amendment in 2006. Passage of this amendment by the public added the following language to Article XVI of the state constitution:
Article XVI, Section 3.5 of the Hawaii Constitution
| Text of Section 3.5:
There shall be a commission on salaries as provided by law, which shall review and recommend salaries for the justices and judges of all state courts, members of the legislature, department heads or executive officers of the executive departments and the deputies or assistants to department heads of the executive departments as provided by law, excluding the University of Hawaii and the department of education. The commission shall also review and make recommendations for the salary of the administrative director of the State or equivalent position and the salary of the governor and the lieutenant governor. Any salary established pursuant to this section shall not be decreased during a term of office, unless by general law applying to all salaried officers of the State. Not later than the fortieth legislative day of the 2007 regular legislative session and every six years thereafter, the commission shall submit to the legislature its recommendations and then dissolve. The recommended salaries submitted shall become effective as provided in the recommendation, unless the legislature disapproves the entire recommendation as a whole by adoption of a concurrent resolution prior to adjournment sine die of the legislative session in which the recommendation is submitted; provided that any change in salary which becomes effective shall not apply to the legislature to which the recommendation for the change in salary was submitted. |
The commission consists of seven members selected by the governor (two seats), the President of the Hawaii State Senate (two seats), Speaker of the Hawaii House of Representatives (two seats) and the Chief Justice of the state Supreme Court (one seat). Commissioners meet every six years to evaluate salaries for executive, judicial and legislative officials. Their recommendations go into effect unless the Hawaii State Legislature votes to reject the entirety of the commission's final report. The commission last met in November 2012 and made recommendations for official salaries between 2013 and 2018.[5]
Historical officeholders
The Hawaii State Legislature appointed the state's first auditor in 1965. Since then, there have been three auditors and two acting auditors.[2]
| List of Former Officeholders from 1965-Present | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Name | Tenure | |||
| 1 | Clinton T. Tanimura | 1965-1988 | |||
| - | Newton Sue (acting) | 1988-1991 | |||
| 2 | Marion Higa | 1991-2012 | |||
| - | Jan Yamane (acting) | 2012-2016 | |||
| 3 | Les Kondo | 2016-present | |||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Hawaii State Auditor. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
Contact info
Address:
465 South King Street, Suite 500
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813-2917
Phone: (808) 587-0800
Fax: (808) 587-0830
Email: auditors2@auditor.state.hi.us
Office hours: Monday to Friday, 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Hawaii Standard Time)
See also
| Hawaii | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Hawaii Legislative Reference Bureau, "The Constitution of the State of Hawaii, Article 7 Section 10," accessed January 17, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Hawaii Auditor, "About the Office," accessed August 17, 2016
- ↑ Hawaii Legislative Reference Bureau, "The Constitution of the State of Hawaii, Article 7 Section 10," accessed January 17, 2021
- ↑ Hawaii Legislative Reference Bureau, "The Constitution of the State of Hawaii, Article 7 Section 10," accessed January 17, 2021
- ↑ Commission on Salaries, "Report and Recommendations to the 2013 Legislature," March 18, 2013
