James Moore & Company presented the City of High Springs’ fiscal year 2023 audit on the commission meeting agenda, and the auditor told commissioners the audit was late because the city supplied trial-balance numbers with classification and coding problems.

Bridal McKittrick, director with James Moore and Company, said auditors received the city’s numbers April 24 and prioritized High Springs’ work so they could issue the report June 16. “These financial statements are your financial statements,” McKittrick told the commission, adding the firm typically turns an audit in four to six weeks if it receives clean trial-balance data.

The audit included the standard opinion, a single-audit report for grant spending and an internal-control and compliance report. McKittrick said grant testing showed no compliance exceptions, but the internal-control letter listed six findings tied largely to problems in the general ledger and accounting software, including: an incorrect utility-billing rate; untimely bank reconciliations; needed grant-schedule preparation; reconciliation and audit adjustments; budgetary noncompliance in two general-fund departments; and fund-classification and posting errors.

Diane, a finance staff member, told commissioners the department has written several policies, engaged a consultant to help clean large data volumes and already corrected many of the FY2023 coding issues. “Yes. Yes. And we actually have several policies right now that address all of the issues we've talked about,” Diane said. She and the auditor said the consultant work made it possible to produce auditable numbers.

McKittrick noted additional reports required by state rules, including the financial-condition assessment and a management letter to the Auditor General. She also described the auditor’s review of key estimates—allowance for uncollectible receivables, depreciation, and net pension liability—and the adjusting entries auditors recorded as part of the process.

Commissioners asked for context about several balances. McKittrick highlighted the impact of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) receipts on assigned fund balance and cautioned that the Government Finance Officers Association’s recommended floor for unrestricted reserves is two months of expenditures (about 16.7 percent). Diane said the city still has ARPA funds and other reserves and that although the general fund showed budgetary overexpenditure in FY2023, those balances are not exhausted.

Commissioners and staff discussed next steps. McKittrick said the firm and city staff are targeting mid-July to begin FY2024 procedures; she said the firm will prioritize High Springs’ audit if the city delivers clean numbers. Diane said the department has made changes to coding and policies and is already working on FY2024 to avoid a repeat.

The presentation concluded with commissioners thanking the auditors and noting the consultant’s role in producing auditable numbers. The commission accepted the presentation; no ordinance or budget action was taken at that moment.

What’s next: Auditors said they will begin FY2024 procedures mid-July if the city can supply validated trial-balance data; staff said policies enacted since FY2023 should reduce repeat findings.