The California state bar’s backlog of unresolved disciplinary cases grew by nearly 90% between 2015 and 2020 despite the agency’s efforts to fix the chronic problem, according to a report released Thursday by state Auditor Elaine Howle.

The critical audit also found the bar did not release complete information in a 2019 discipline system report and that the lawyer-licensing agency did not comply with its own policies in spending nearly $4 million on a vendor to administer last year’s online bar exam.