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Wellington audit progress frees withheld tax and state funds; staff outlines 2026 budget calendar
Summary
Town staff reported continued audit work, said the 2022 audit was cleared and property tax withholdings of roughly $2.3 million were released; CDOT released $211,000 in HUTF funds and DOLA is awaiting the 2023 audit before releasing conservation trust funds. Staff also shared the 2026 budget calendar and timing for budget workshops.
Town finance staff reported that auditors are actively testing internal controls and that the town is making progress on overdue audits. The Town Treasurer said the 2022 audit was completed and that Larimer County has released roughly $2,300,000 in withheld property taxes to the town.
The Treasurer told the advisory board that the Colorado Department of Transportation released about $211,000 in highway users tax fund (HUTF) dollars and that the Department of Local Affairs is awaiting submission of the 2023 audit before releasing conservation trust funds. The Treasurer said those withheld revenues were deposited in May and will appear in financial reports in July; audits will then accrue them to the appropriate fiscal years.
Staff gave an audit-status update: auditors are "actively testing our internal controls" and were requesting documentation such as liability account reconciliations and an amortization schedule for bond premium. The Treasurer said draft financials for nonenterprise (governmental) funds have been reviewed and enterprise fund drafts were still in progress.
Advisory members and staff discussed the practical effect of receiving the withheld revenues. The Treasurer explained the cash inflow does not create new revenue from an accounting perspective because the budget already included those amounts as receivables; the cash replenishes reserves that staff had drawn on to maintain operations during the delay.
Staff described fund-balance and reserve rules that affect how any replenished cash may be used. The Treasurer said the general fund policy requires roughly 33% of operating expenditures in reserves, which amounts to about $2.9 million. The town's starting general fund balance figure mentioned in briefing materials was about $7.9 million; staff also described roughly $1.0 million in planned transfers to enterprise funds for the current year and cautioned that capital projects not covered by grants will reduce fund balance.
The treasurer distributed the 2026 budget calendar to board members and said a budget priority work session with the Board of Trustees is scheduled for the next day, with staff to prepare department capital and personnel priorities through the summer and return a formal budget proposal in August. Members were told discussions on personnel will follow in September and the fee schedule will be reviewed later in the fall.
No formal board action was taken on audits or budget items at the meeting; the advisory board will receive further financial-management policy proposals from staff in the summer and may convene additional meetings during budget season.
