Lebanon council accepts delayed FY2024 audit; auditors give clean opinion despite budget overages

Lebanon City Council accepted the city's fiscal year 2024 annual financial report on Aug. 27 after staff said the final audit arrived Aug. 21, nearly eight months past the statutory due date. The city's finance director said auditors issued a clean, unmodified opinion, and that the city's net position increased by about $12.2 million from 2023, largely because roughly $10.9 million in new capital assets came online in 2024. The acceptance followed an extended staff summary and questions from councilors. Finance Director Brandon (first name provided in the meeting), explained the timing: auditors performed field work the week of October 2024, followed by delayed deliverables and additional follow-up that pushed the final delivery to late August 2025. He told the council, "I'm pleased to report that the auditors did issue a clean, unmodified opinion." He also noted the audit was delivered after inquiries by a national ratings agency. Why it matters: the audit documents the…