Town auditors issue clean opinion; recommend improvements to segregation of duties and capital-asset disposals

Oakland — The town’s independent auditors presented the fiscal year 2024 audit and issued a clean opinion on the financial statements, while flagging a significant internal-control deficiency and recommending targeted financial-management improvements. “Tiffany Mangold, audit partner with the engagement firm, told the commission that the firm issued a clean opinion, “the highest level of assurance,” and said the town’s financial statements were “fairly stated in all material respects.” The auditors reported no material weaknesses in internal control but identified one significant deficiency related to segregation of duties in the small finance and accounting team. Tiffany Mangold said the town’s limited staffing meant “not one employee has access to multiple things” should be the goal and recommended strengthening detection and oversight controls such as independent bank-reconciliation review. The auditors also noted a recurring management-letter item related to financial close and reporting that staff had worked on with consultants; they recommended continued attention to capital-asset disposals after finding some assets that had been recorded as disposed while still in use. On federal compliance, the auditors said the town exceeded the Uniform Guidance single-audit threshold by spending more than $750,000 in federal funds in the year — driven largely by ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds — but that the town’s ARPA compliance engagement showed no findings. “We looked at how you spent your ARPA funding, and we found you to be fully in compliance,” Mangold said. The audit presentation included standard GASB-related communications (the auditors cited GASB standards 101 and 102) and highlighted financial results as of Sept. 30, 2024: general-fund revenues increased versus the prior year largely due to new development and sales-tax growth; the town’s unassigned fund balance rose to roughly 37% of current expenditures, above the GFOA-recommended 25% level. After the auditors’ presentation, a commissioner moved to accept the auditor’s report for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2024; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote. Town staff acknowledged the audit recommendations and said they would continue to work with consultants to remediate segregation-of-duty exposures and clean up interfund due-tos and froms ahead of next year’s audit.