Comptroller: city is catching up on delayed audits; 2019 issued, 2020 expected by spring

Comptroller Morton briefed the board Feb. 18 on the status of the city's financial audits and said the city has issued the 2019 audit, completed fieldwork for 2020 and expects to finish the 2020 audit by March or early April. He said the work is complex because several legacy accounting and software issues, interactions with Urban Renewal Agency (URA) accounting and water‑department software transitions created reconciliation challenges.

Morton said the single‑audit (federal) process is tied to the annual financial report and that auditors cannot finalize the city audit until certain agency audits and reconciliations are complete. He noted some prior inter‑agency payments and administrative cost reallocations traced back to HUD that required extra reconciliation.

Morton said corrective measures are underway, including accrual and compensated‑absences adjustments and that 2021 audit work is scheduled to follow. He told the board that auditors and accountants will present publicly in March to answer resident questions about the audits and related records. He said doing so helps build public confidence and provides an independent voice to explain audit results.

Several elected officials praised the comptroller’s office and staff for work to clear up legacy accounting issues and said timely audits are critical for unlocking grant funds and other external funding. The board discussed continuing engagement with external auditors and the state comptroller’s office and asked staff to continue prioritizing the outstanding audit schedule.

Morton added that the audit delays had real operational consequences, including withheld reimbursements and delayed grant flows; the board asked for aggressive follow‑through to restore normal reporting cadence.

The board scheduled continued attention to audits and anticipated a public presentation by the auditors and accountants in March.