About the County Auditor
Dr. Chris Horton was appointed as the County Auditor on November 9, 2016. The County Auditor conducts independent performance audits of County departments, programs, and services, focusing on program efficiency, effectiveness, and transparency. The County Auditor’s work complements the County’s internal audit function within the Department of Management and Finance.
Chris has worked in performance auditing since 2001 for both state and local governments. Prior to his service in Arlington, Chris was the audit manager for Fairfax County Public Schools’ Office of Auditor General, where he helped build the office’s performance auditing capability, performed audits within a variety of business units, and advised the Audit Committee on the structure of the audit function. Earlier in his career, Chris served as an audit supervisor with the City and County of Denver, where he helped to implement a new performance audit function and led an audit teams focusing on improving effectiveness in highly visible public policy areas. Chris began his audit career with Arizona state government, primarily working in the Performance Audit Division of the Arizona Auditor General’s Office. He also helped start the compliance audit function for the Telecommunications Program Office (now called Enterprise Infrastructure & Communications) in the Arizona Department of Administration.
Chris serves as President of the Association of Local Government Auditors’ (ALGA) Board of Directors, where he has helped lead development of the Corporate Associates Program, ALGA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion effort, and ALGA’s strategic plan update. Chris also serves on the ALGA Conference Committee, which develops the annual ALGA conference program and activities. Previously, he was the chairman of the ALGA Education Committee. Under his leadership, the committee significantly expanded the number and variety of educational offerings, such as webinars and regional training conferences, and created the ALGA mentorship program. Chris also served on the Publications Committee, which oversees ALGA’s Local Government Auditing Quarterly journal.
In addition to his service in ALGA, Chris has led numerous audit trainings in Virginia, Colorado, and Arizona, and served on the 2017 program committee for the Association of Government Accountant’s (AGA) Internal Control and Fraud Prevention Training. Chris is a member of the AGA, the Virginia Local Government Auditors Association, and the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA). Chris holds four certifications through the IIA, including Certified Internal Auditor and Certified Government Audit Professional. In 2018, Chris was appointed by the Comptroller General of the United States to be a local government auditing representative on his Domestic Working Group, which identifies current and emerging challenges and opportunities for greater collaboration among the intergovernmental audit community.
Chris completed his B.A. in Political Science and History, and an M.A. in History, both at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. He completed his Ph.D. in Public Administration at Arizona State University.