Orange County Auditor-Controller

What’s at stake in this race

This is one of the few races on the ballot that is all but officially decided. The incumbent is running unopposed.

What does the Orange County auditor-controller do?

• Keeps track of the county’s financial records. 
• Makes sure departments are using funds correctly and following laws, policies and contract requirements. 
• Performs internal audits. 
• Keeps an eye on the county’s books for any fraud, waste or mismanagement of funds.

You might know the Orange County auditor-controller from:

Orange County’s auditor-controller teamed up with state Controller Malia Cohen earlier this year to create a new kind of refund program. The Unclaimed Property Program allows county residents to tap into millions of dollars in “unclaimed money” that rightful owners have forgotten about or left behind.

Here are some of the things the auditor-controller doesn’t do:

• Prosecute — the auditor-controller can only detect and identify fraud. 
• Handle tax revenue. 
• Create the county’s budget.

Fast facts about the Auditor-Controller Office: 

• An elected auditor-controller serves a four-year term. 
• The auditor-controller's salary is more than $225,000 a year, not including benefits.
• The elected position came to be in 1982, when the Board of Supervisors consolidated the auditor’s and controller’s duties.

What’s on the agenda for next term:

The budget: The auditor-controller will have to make sure that no dollar goes to waste as the county deals with shrinking support from the federal government and its obligations to fund payouts from the 2024 Airport Fire.

Updating tech systems: The Auditor-Controller’s Office is unifying finance and human resource operations from more than 20 county departments under one system. This move is expected to save the county millions of dollars and should be completed in 2027.

What it takes to win:

The winning candidate needs more than 50% of the votes to secure victory in the primary and avoid a runoff in the November general election. In this race, Andrew N. Hamilton is running unopposed and has a clear path to victory.

The candidate

Andrew N. Hamilton, incumbent

Hamilton was first elected as Orange County’s auditor-controller in 2022. He has about 35 years of experience as a certified public accountant in the public and private sectors. He also has served on the Lake Forest City Council.

Andrew N. Hamilton

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Courtesy Andrew N. Hamilton

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More voter resources:

• Candidate website
• Endorsements include Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes, O.C. Supervisor Janet Nguyen and state Sen. Tony Strickland. 
• Full endorsements list here.

Go deeper: 

• Unclaimed money? Orange County launches site to help residents find it (NBC Los Angeles)
• Orange County approves $10.8B budget — but there's one giant question mark (LAist)
• Orange County Taps Oracle Cloud Suite for Financial, HR Systems (Industry Insider)

How to get involved:

One of the best things you can do to hold officials accountable is pay attention. Your city council, board of supervisors, school board and more all hold public meetings that anybody can attend. These are times you can talk to your elected officials directly and hear about the policies they’re voting on that affect your community.

• Read tips on how to get involved.
• The Orange County Board of Supervisors meets on alternating Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m. at 400 W. Civic Center Drive, Santa Ana. You can check out the O.C. Board of Supervisors full calendar here.
• Learn how to submit a public comment to the O.C. Board of Supervisors.