Auditor: Oak Grove R‑VI receives clean opinion but reserves have fallen

Brad Seal of Westbrook & Company presented the district's draft financial audit and the required federal single‑audit information, explaining the results and next steps before final approval.

Seal said the auditor's report is a draft because the federal government had not issued the final compliance supplement required for single audits of entities with more than $750,000 of federal expenditures. He said the firm did not expect substantive changes to the numbers but that the board could not formally approve the audit or submit it to DESE until the compliance supplement was released.

Key points from the draft audit presentation:
- Unmodified (clean) opinion on the financial statements and on compliance for major federal programs (Title I and Special Education clusters).
- No significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in internal control were identified.
- Net operating funds (general + special revenue) showed a net decrease of roughly $628,000 for the year.
- Reserve (unrestricted fund balance) declined to approximately 12.6 percent of operating expenditures, down from a recent high near 21 percent during the COVID funding period; the auditor said a typical healthy target is about 20 percent.
- The district held about $21 million in unspent bond proceeds restricted to capital projects.

Seal and board members discussed procurement documentation and procedures; the auditor recommended better logging of purchase orders and bid documentation for transactions below the formal sealed‑bid threshold, and district staff said they have centralized records to address that recommendation.

Board members asked about reserve targets and the auditor said they generally recommend about 20 percent of operating expenditures as a healthy reserve level. No formal board action was taken; the auditor said the next meeting will likely include the final audit for approval once the federal compliance supplement is issued.