State Audit Questions Thousands in Steve Burke’s Travel Expenses at Port and Pool District

A new fraud investigation by the Washington State Auditor’s Office questions thousands of dollars in travel expenses incurred by two Port Angeles public agencies while Steve Burke served as a port commissioner and the William Shore Memorial Pool District’s executive director.

The report, published Thursday, September 24, 2026, found Burke received $3,603 from the Port of Port Angeles for travel-related mileage and meal per diems between October 2019 and September 2025.

He also charged at least $3,904 to the district’s credit card, mostly for fuel and meals on the same days for which he sought and received port reimbursement.

An earlier November 2025 investigation found Burke personally benefited from at least $41,148 in self-insurance medical benefit payments, payroll tax refunds and credit card purchases.

It identified another $25,980 as questionable because auditors could not determine whether the expenditures served a legitimate business purpose.

Burke denied seeking reimbursement from both agencies for the same mileage or expense during a May 13, 2026, interview with investigators, according to the report. His attorney was present.

Auditors questioned whether both agencies should have incurred fuel and meal costs on those days. Within those amounts, they identified at least $165 in misappropriated reimbursements between November 2021 and January 2025 because Burke submitted district credit card receipts for personal payment from the port.

The report did not classify all of the overlapping travel spending as misappropriated.

Asked about specific dates with overlapping travel costs, Burke told investigators the district’s vehicle expense allowance was part of his overall compensation and was not intended to cover district business travel.

He said the only way he could access that allowance was by using the district’s credit card for personal purchases, according to the report.

Auditors first identified concerns during a regularly scheduled port audit in November 2025, the same month the auditor’s office released an earlier fraud report on Burke’s financial activities at the pool district, also known as the Shore Metro Park District.

Auditors reviewing receipts attached to port reimbursement requests found expenses charged to the district’s credit card that Burke then submitted to the port for personal reimbursement. The district had incurred those costs, the report said.

Investigators reviewed all port reimbursements paid to Burke from January 2019 through November 2025, comparing receipts and other supporting records with district records obtained during the earlier investigation.

The auditors found the port had internal controls, but those safeguards were unlikely to detect the activity because neither agency could see the other’s receipts and reimbursement processes.

At the district, auditors reiterated earlier findings that financial controls were inadequate to protect public resources. They cited credit card charges that personally benefited the executive director and missing documentation needed to establish a business purpose for other purchases.

The Olympic Herald previously covered the push to censure Burke and his resignation from the port commission. Burke resigned from the port commission May 1.

Auditors recommended that when employees disclose outside employment, both agencies consider those work arrangements in monitoring potential conflicts.

They also urged each agency to consult its attorney about amounts it may seek to recover from Burke, including $7,838 apiece for their respective shares of the investigation. Those investigation costs total $15,676 and are separate from the reimbursement finding.

In its written response, the port said it had cooperated fully with investigators and would consult legal counsel about the recommendations. It also said it would review whether additional measures were appropriate to address potential conflicts and reimbursement issues involving service with other public agencies.

The pool district said it accepted the findings and would adopt the recommendations.

The auditor’s office said it would review both agencies’ internal controls during their next audits.