Hans Andersen is a CPA with more than 40 years of experience, a former Orem City Council member, and a lifelong defender of the taxpayer. He's read the fine print, filed the records requests, and stopped the tax hikes. Now he's asking to do it for all of Utah County — as your County Auditor.
The County Auditor is the taxpayer's accountant. It's the one office whose whole job is to make sure your money is counted honestly, spent lawfully, and reported openly. Hans has spent his career doing exactly that — as a CPA for thousands of Utah County families and businesses, and as a public servant who was never afraid to ask the uncomfortable question.
For years, Hans did voluntarily what the auditor's office is paid to do: he followed the money.
Hans led the effort to stop the UTOPIA property tax increase in Orem — and won, saving homeowners from a new tax for a troubled project.
The full story →He filed the open-records requests, paid the fees out of his own pocket, and took the evidence of taxpayer-funded politicking to the county — triggering an investigation.
The full story →When city hall came after a neighborhood pumpkin farmer, Hans fought for him — and won. He believes government should protect families and farms, not harass them.
The full story →"I consider myself a statesman and not a politician. I know what the proper role of government is — and I have the courage to stand up for it."
— Hans AndersenIn August 2012 the Mayor and five councilmen moved to raise Orem property taxes by $3,345,000 a year. Hans led the fight against it — half of it was beaten in the council chamber, the other half at the ballot box. None of it was ever collected.
Orem families have kept an estimated $50,175,000 since the 2012 council vote.
$3,345,000 a year × 15 years — money the city never took.
That total is the arithmetic above and nothing more: the full annual increase, none of it ever levied, counted from the 2012 council vote through 2026. It is not a line in a city ledger.
The public hearing opened at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, August 14, 2012 and ran past 2 a.m. — eight hours of Orem residents saying no, hundreds of them. Before the night was over, the mayor cut the proposal in half, to $1.7 million, on the spot.
Citizens forced what was left onto the ballot. On November 5, 2013, 71.26% of Orem voters rejected the increase — 69.16% in the first count, climbing as the remaining ballots were tallied.
"Who made better use of that $50 million — Orem City, or Orem families?"
— Hans AndersenThis site is also the story of a life: a family, a farm, a practice built on trust, and decades of service to Orem and Utah County.
One of eleven children. Father of eight sons. A veteran, a scoutmaster for decades, and a grandfather who still hand-picks cherries, apricots, grapes, and plums from his own orchard.
Read his story →Hans's father, H. Verlan Andersen, wrote on the principles Hans lives by — good government, self-reliance, and faith. Hans helped gather that work into one volume.
See the book →The home-based practice Hans built over 50 years, one honest return at a time — now serving Utah County alongside his stepson Adam Daley.
About the practice →Wondering where Hans stands on county spending, transparency, or property taxes? Ask him directly. The same "Ask Hans" experience clients love at Andersen Accounting is here for the campaign — answering questions about his record, his platform, and his plans for the auditor's office.
