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Auditors give Blue Springs a clean opinion; custodial fund restatement noted
Summary
External auditors presented the city's 2024 audit, issuing an unmodified (clean) opinion, noting one material adjustment in a custodial fund and reviewing federal grant testing including ARPA expenditures.
Blue Springs’ external auditors presented the 2024 audit to the City Council on April 21 and issued an unmodified — commonly called a clean — opinion on the city’s financial statements.
“ We issued an unmodified or also known as a clean audit opinion in accordance with the accounting standards,” Ms. Hughes, the auditor presenting the report, told the council.
Ms. Hughes summarized materials included in the city’s annual comprehensive financial report, the compliance/single-audit report and required communications to those charged with governance. The audit work included testing of major federal programs; the auditor said ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) spending was the major program tested in 2024.
The compliance report identified a material adjustment to one custodial fund that required a restatement in the financials; the auditor described the adjustment as significant in dollar amount for that fund but noted it was an isolated accounting correction. Ms. Hughes said there were no uncorrected misstatements and no reportable findings in the single-audit related to unallowable costs.
The auditor also summarized key financial trends: the city’s general fund revenue rose about $2,000,000 (roughly 6%), driven primarily by increased property tax collections and a new marijuana sales tax; total general fund expenditures rose about $2,600,000 (about 9%), with increases in public safety related to staffing and equipment. Ms. Hughes noted enterprise funds (water, sewer, golf, field house/aquatic center) saw operating revenue increases tied to rate changes and the new aquatic center.
Council member Cook commended finance staff, saying, “I want to commend Karen Van Winkle and all her staff… to have a clean audit is amazing.” The council noted the city has a long record of submitting reports for the Government Finance Officers Association review and receiving awards.
The auditors did not identify difficulties obtaining information and said the finance staff were responsive during the audit. The council accepted the presentation; no formal vote was required to receive the auditor’s report at the public meeting.
