SB 1645 Arizona Senate · 57th Legislature - Second Regular Session

performance audits; auditor general

SB 1645 expands the Arizona Auditor General's authority to conduct audits of state and local government spending. It requires annual financial audits of state agencies, performance audits of county transportation excise tax spending every five years, and new school district audits to track the percentage of funds spent directly in classrooms. School districts must post this spending data online and report on implementing audit recommendations within two years. The bill also mandates audits for entities receiving taxpayer funds (like counties and cities) to verify compliance with spending rules. These provisions apply directly to state agencies, counties with transportation taxes, and school districts receiving highway user revenue.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Feb 9, 2026 Last action Mar 9, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Version → Senate Engrossed Version (03/03/2026) · 5 edits · Mar 3, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was reformatted from a draft introduction to a final Senate version, adding new statutory sections that expand the Auditor General's duties. The most significant change is the addition of a new requirement for the Auditor General to annually review per diem compensation and expense reimbursements for state employees and board members. The bill also adds a new power for the Auditor General to hire consultants for specific audits and establishes a fee structure for auditing federal funds and special requests from political subdivisions.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include new audit responsibilities regarding employee compensation and the authority to charge fees for specific services.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new duty requiring the Auditor General to annually review per diem compensation and expense reimbursements for state employees and members of state boards by sampling and evaluating propriety.

Added a new power allowing the Auditor General to hire consultants specifically to conduct the transportation excise tax and highway user revenue audits.

Added a requirement that school districts must participate in any hearings scheduled by the joint legislative audit committee during the review of audit recommendations.

FISCAL

Added a provision allowing the Auditor General to charge reasonable fees for auditing federal funds and for special audits or services requested by political subdivisions, with proceeds going to a revolving fund.

TECHNICAL

Removed introductory text and page headers associated with the initial draft version, replacing them with the final Senate engrossed format.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 3, 2026

Upper · Passed

PASSED

upper

Mar 3, 2026

Upper · Passed

upper

Feb 18, 2026

Upper · Passed

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors